More Than Useless
by Unwritten.25
Summary: ABANDONED. REWRITTEN AS "WASTED"
1. Prelude

**Author's Notes:** Yes, another new story. I couldn't get this one out of my head, so I decided to write it out for a while so I could drain the plot bunny and focus more on AIT. Please enjoy minna-san.

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**More Than Useless  
****Prelude: The Beginning

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**

**Riddle Manor, England  
****August 2****nd****, 1998**

"Come out to die, Harry!" Voldemort crowed, his eyes fixed on the shadowy figure hidden behind one of his snake statues.

Harry Potter rolled his eyes, wondering when his nemesis would realize that that line was starting to get real old. _'Maybe he should spend less time plotting and more time coming up with better phrases to yell at his opponent'_ he thought absently, before coming out of his dark corner. He stopped feet away from Voldemort, who was now staring at him intensely with crimson eyes, and raised an eyebrow at the snake-like man.

Compared to the pale, scaly form of Voldemort, Harry was nothing short of impressive. His hair which he had started to grow out after Sirius' death in tribute to the man flowed past his shoulders and had a dark red tint to it. He was still short, due to malnutrition during his time at the Dursley's, but the weak muscles he had gained from Quidditch had strengthened into a wiry build. He was dressed in dark gray and black battle robes, and his cat-like green eyes gleamed in the shadowy throne room, without any glasses to hinder them.

Voldemort eyed his nemesis with no little surprise. What had happened to the scrawny, four-eyed, ignorant child he had battled so many times before? Granted he hadn't met Potter face-to-face since that little fiasco at the Ministry, but how could a child change so much in just three years? Had that Black traitor really meant so much to the boy?

Deciding that Potter's new look wasn't worth pondering over; Voldemort raised his wand and hissed out, "**Crucio**."

To his surprise and dismay, Potter merely twisted his body in a way that should have been impossible and side-stepped the spell completely! And then the brat had the utter gall to say, "Can't you do any better than that Snakey boy? Honestly, Crucio is fruitcake compared to some of the Dark Arts."

Harry was enjoying himself – while baiting Tom Riddle may not be good for one's health, it was always so much fun. He grinned as he side-stepped another Crucio and a nasty looking Cutting Curse – at least the old snake was getting some variety. Getting Unforgivables thrown at him all the time got a little boring. Now all he had to do was wait for the perfect moment to execute his plan and then Voldemort's reign of terror would be over.

Harry kept moving and started to build his magic – he had to get closer to Voldemort to finish this, but he needed to be prepared. As the Dark Lord threw yet _another_ Crucio at him, Harry swept close and chanted one long sentence in one breath.

**"Peragro ut ****mundus fretus noster nostri vita (1)."**

Bright white light exploded in the room, gathering around Voldemort and Harry in particular. The snake-like man screamed as the magic hit bare scales, but Harry remained silent as a corpse, eyes fixed on his enemy's pale face. A large door-like portal opened behind Voldemort, long arms of pitch blackness reaching out to wrap around his skinny body. The old snake's screams grew louder as he came closer to the portal but were silenced abruptly as one of the dark arms wrapped around the lipless mouth.

Harry watched the portal pull in and close around Voldemort with dispassionate eyes. Another door opened nearby him, this one made of green and gold light and he smiled. He walked calmly through the door, leaving the throne room empty.

* * *

_To the Order of the Phoenix and Others,_

_By now you have discovered I left on my own to go to Riddle Manor. I'm sure you're all properly furious with me (well except for Snape) and are planning a rescue plan or some other sort of nonsense. I'm telling you now – stop. When you get there both Voldemort and I will be gone. He has been banished to a dimension of Hell from which he can never return and must suffer forever for his crimes. The spell demanded the user to go to another dimension as well, as a sacrifice, and so I will have disappeared as well. To my friends, family and comrades, a few words of advice and gratitude:_

_Ron – The world isn't black and white. Not all Slytherins are bad, just as not all Gryffindors are good. Every house has its traitor. Don't make assumptions based on houses or appearance, because then you will only make an idiot out of yourself. Thank you for befriending this orphan boy, who thought no one could ever like him. And for Merlin's sake, ask Hermione out already! _

_Hermione – Books can't teach you everything, and not all authority figures are right. Everyone makes mistakes, even the supposed heroes. Learn that sometimes you don't always know best, and that there will be people who do better in things than you will, or you will be living a very unhappy life. Thank you for never leaving my side, even during my most crazy of schemes. Keep Ron in check (and for heavens sake go out with him already!). _

_Moony – Sirius loved you, and probably wouldn't want you to mope like you have been. Life goes on, Moony, and we just have to learn to live through all the hardships. Tonks is so very much in love you and I think that you should give her a chance. You, of all people, should know that age doesn't matter when it comes to love. Thank you for being there for me (and get some new clothes, you old cheapskate!). _

_Forge and Gred – An order from your beloved contributor – keep the pranks coming, and give the world something to laugh at. Never listen when someone tells you that your dreams will never get you anywhere._

_Mrs. Weasley – I know you love your children, but you need to give them some space. There comes a time in every parent's life when they need to let their children go, so that they can grow and change. Keeping them wrapped in cotton will only hurt them in the long run. Thank you, however, for giving an orphaned boy his first hug and a home._

_Mr. Weasley – Learn that sometimes you need to stand up to your wife, because she is not all-knowing when it comes to her children. Keep your love of all things Muggle, no matter what anyone thinks of it, because sometimes Muggles are wiser than Wizards. Thank you for giving me someone to look up to, and a person to lean on in my later years._

_Ginny – You are the most wonderful girl I have known, and I wish I could have returned your feelings. I know you don't want any more big brothers, but unfortunately you have gained another one. Remember me Ginny, but don't grow into an old spinster with 39 cats (no offense Mrs. Figg!) just because your Dream Boy doesn't show up. _

_Snape – I cannot apologize for any of the antics of my father, because I never knew him. I will tell you this – thank you for being a constant in this orphaned boy's life, and for telling the truth even when others wouldn't. You brought me down in my arrogance, and taught me lessons that I needed to learn. This is my lesson to you – the past is the past, and while one should never forget it, one should never live their life by it. Be free of your mistakes – neither my mother nor I blame you for that night._

_Moody – You taught me all you knew, and helped me survive until now. Thank you for giving me some hope in adults – you listened to me when no one else would, and helped me solve my problems._

_Tonks – Never let Remus deter you from loving him – he is especially stupid when it comes to romantic love. Take care of him for me and for his friends – we love him too much to see him suffer. _

_Luna – Luna, my wonderful wacky friend, never let anyone change you. Ignore those that mock you because they can't see what you can. _

_Neville – No one can insult you without your consent. Get a backbone, my shy friend and show the world what you are made of. You are stronger than they are, and all you need to do is tap into that strength._

_Dumbledore – Learn that the pieces on your chessboard are people old man. Don't put the needs of the many over the needs of the few. Your deceptions, lies, and manipulations will come to bite you in the ass someday. People can manage their own lives, and do not need you to do it for them, even if you do supposedly know "best". People will follow a person who will tell the truth and not a person who tells only half of it._

_Remember to live for those who are alive, and to remember those who have passed you by. You will live in my heart and memory wherever I go._

_Sincerely,  
__Harry James Potter, "The Boy Who Is No More"

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_

Harry's first thought was that the portal was warm and welcoming; the green and gold light smoothed over his skin and made him feel comfortable and happy. It seemed that the spell literally was sending him to a place of light and happiness. He absently wondered what kind of hell Voldemort was sent to, but was shaken from his thoughts when the light stopped and he was standing in the middle of a room.

The most extravagant room he had ever seen, in fact. Plush dark blue carpet lined the floors, and where there wasn't carpet there was smooth onyx crystal. The walls were painted a dark blue and had deep green, gold, and silver tapestries depicting people in battle and victories draped over them. The ceiling was high and made of the same onyx of the uncarpeted floor. Overall the effect reminded Harry of the night sky.

He turned when he heard whispers behind him and raised an eyebrow when he saw a bowl placed on a pedestal made of what looked to be ebony wood. He made his way over and started when he realized that the whispers were coming from the silvery water in the bowl. He cautiously looked into it and stiffened.

Images from his previous life floated behind his eyes at lightning speed. After that he got images – a man with long white hair and golden eyes, a woman with purple eyes and black hair, a vague group of people that he could barely make out, a sinister person with tangled black hair and blood red eyes, a huge magnificent dog with white fur howling at the moon, two swords, one of life and one of death, and so many other things. Harry staggered backwards, feeling his mind overload at the amount of information pressed into it.

When he collected himself he found that he was on both of his knees in front of the bowl and that there was a person standing next to him. He quickly got to his feet, his wand out in case of danger. However the man wasn't looking at him, and instead was staring deeply into the waters of the bowl. Harry took the moment to study him,

He was as tall as Harry with his long dark hair pulled into the topknot generally worn by Samurai's. His face was stern and tanned, with the look of a leader, and his eyes were dark and cold. He was dressed in dark red Samurai like clothing – wide pants, with a long sleeved, low collared shirt and a pair of swords buckled onto his back.

Suddenly the man's eyes swung up to Harry's face, making him take a step back. The man chuckled darkly and stepped closer, ignoring the wand in Harry's hand. He grabbed Harry's face and brought them close together, his black eyes inspecting every inch of his face. Then, with an explosive sigh, he released Harry and stepped back.

"Excuse me," he said, his voice heavy with an Asian accent, "but I had to make sure a friend of mine didn't make a mistake."

"Who are you?" Harry asked cautiously. "And where are we?"

The man smirked, "Welcome to the Temple of Fate Harry Potter. I am called Kenshin by my people, but many others call me by a different name. I am one of the Gods or _Kami_ of the world you were trying to pass into."

Harry quirked an eyebrow and said quickly, "Why was I brought here then? What is it you "Kami" need of me?"

Kenshin chuckled again, this time with more warmth, "Quick one, aren't you? Many wouldn't have expected Kami to have wanted anything from them. You were brought here because by putting yourself into our world you are changing the very future of it. In one timeline the end is of darkness and despair, where an evil rules because, while those working against it are formidable, they squabbled too much amongst themselves to work together to defeat it. Then there is another timeline, the timeline which will come to pass because of you, that will have long times of peace and happiness, where the evil will be defeated."

Harry groaned deeply in his throat. All he had wanted to do was defeat Voldemort. He hadn't wanted to get caught up in the troubles of another world, or any more evil beings set out for power. He had just wanted some peace and quiet, or was that too much to ask for, being Harry Potter?

Kenshin sighed, "I wish we did not have to ask this of you, child. When you looked into Fate's Holy Water you opened yourself to us – we saw your past, present, and future. It is surprising you did not pass out – only those with the strongest wills have managed to keep conscious," he gave Harry an appraising eye.

Harry snorted, "Well my old mentor always did say I had a problem with being stubborn."

Kenshin laughed again and Harry was surprised that this one sounded even more genuine than the previous two. It seemed the God was warming up to him.

"That may have had something to do with it," the God said with a small smile. "Anyhow, when we saw your future, we became aware of your effect on our world. They sent me to see if you indeed could handle this burden. My friend, Miko, was sure and I needed to be sure. I have determined you able to bear this burden, if you choose to take it on."

Harry thought it over and said, "What will happen to me if I accept?"

Kenshin looked surprised at Harry's forethought, "You will be changed or rather some of your heritage will be unlocked."

Harry was wary and didn't hesitate to say as much, "What is this heritage of mine that will be unlocked?"

"In your world and ours there is a multitude of demons and demon lords," Kenshin explained calmly. "One of your parent's apparently came from a line full of full-blood _kurohyou_ – a Panther demon that is thought to be extinct in our world. However there is some sort of cage over your youki, which is the demon power's you inherited from your parent that prevents you from accessing the demonic part of your heritage. If you were to unlock it, you would be considered a daiyoukai – your youki is especially strong, and I'm surprised the barrier didn't disintegrate after a few years."

Harry just stood there, gaping. He'd never considered the idea that his family wasn't made of pure wizards. He hadn't come into any creature inheritances after his coming of age, although he had felt a particular restlessness that he had written off as an effect of the war. To learn that not only had one of his parent's been a demon, but that they had been a full-blooded demon at that……was astounding.

"If one of my parents was a wizard and the other was a demon, wouldn't that make me a half-blood?" Harry asked the first question that came to mind.

Kenshin smiled strangely before answering, "Most would see it that way. However no matter what Demons think, Hanyous, that is a Half-Demon, are just as, if not more, powerful as most demons. Some can even be more powerful than a daiyoukai, who are the highest lords of Demon society. You are one of the most powerful Hanyous I've seen so far, although in the future there will be one close to your level with enough training. Most demons have forgotten that daiyoukai status is granted due to power level, not by blood."

Harry frowned, "Can you tell if the Youkai," his tongue stumbled on the strange word, "heritage is from my mother's or father's side?"

Kenshin cocked his head to the side, and his previously dark eyes flashed a brilliant gold before he said, "It's from your mother's side. She had demon parents."

Harry frowned. He knew that his mother's grandparents were Muggles, as was Petunia. And that meant that either they were extremely good at hiding these things, or Lily hadn't really been their child. _'It's possible, I suppose'_ he mused to himself _'Petunia and mum didn't look like each other at all, and mum was the only one in her family with magic.' _

"So if I agree to change the fate of your world, you will unlock my youki from the cage it's under?" Harry asked carefully.

Kenshin nodded, "It is a serious crime to block it in any case. Kurohyou were always more attuned to their youki than others, especially since most of them were also intimately connected with the spirits and the elements. To cut them off from that……" the God trailed off, looking angry.

Harry frowned as well, wondering who had done such a thing. Kenshin had said the cage was powerful enough to hold down his youki for a number of years, which led to two suspects. Either Voldemort or Dumbledore had, once again, changed his life. However he refused to dwell on it – he had left that world behind and nothing he could do would change it besides unlocking his heritage.

"I will change your world for you, Kenshin," Harry said firmly, decided. It wasn't what he had planned while coming up with the idea to send Voldemort to Hell, but he wouldn't condemn a world to darkness and despair. Snape would call it Gryffindor stupidity but Harry called it chivalry. And if he got his youki unlocked then the entire thing was better for him.

Kenshin nodded, looking relieved. He stepped into Harry's personal space again, and raised a hand to the wizard's forehead. Before he touched anything the Kami said, "You will wake in my world, little one. We will speak again."

And then his hand touched Harry's skin and a burst of white and gold light shot out of it and into Harry's head. Kenshin caught the youngling as he collapsed, unconscious. He smiled slightly – he hadn't expected the child to be so strong in spirit. If anyone could change their world for the better, he believed that this one could do it. He smirked when he saw the beginnings of the changes starting to appear in young Harry and then called up the portal that originally brought the young wizard to the Temple. He gently sent Harry through it, and watched as it closed with a stoic face. He hoped that the child would be prepared for the hardships ahead in his life, and his spirit wouldn't break or they would all be doomed.

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**Author's Notes:** This is a Prelude, which is why it's extremely short and doesn't have all of my usual warnings/disclaimer/pairing things yet. Chapter One WILL have those, and it will fast forward a bit. My style in the MTS will be quite a bit different than in AIT, as I'll be going back and forth in the past via chapters instead of flashback sequences. Hopefully this will keep you interested. TOMORROW AIT Chapter 3 will be out, for those of you that read that story as well. 

**A Note on the Kami:** I AM NOT an expert on Japanese Gods, nor will I claim to be. I do know somewhat of the multiple Gods that are in Japanese culture, and they will be featured vaguely in this story. However Kenshin isn't giving Harry his real name, as is the case with the woman Miko who he mentioned.

_Kurohyou:_ Literally 'Black panther'.

**(1)** The EXTREMELY ROUGH translation is "Travel to worlds depending on our way of life." Harry is basically letting the magic choose where to send them, and since Voldemort is so twisted and has killed so many it chose to send him to a Hell, as Harry knew it would. Harry, however has done good things in his life, and has been fighting evil for a long time, so he gets sent to a better place. I do not claim to know the Latin language, I've never taken it, and I honestly couldn't figure it out to save my life. If this is translated wrong please, _please_ someone give me a better translation so I can look halfway smart, alright?


	2. Interlude One: The Western Lord

**Summary:** Harry Potter ended the Final Battle by launching Voldemort into an alternate version of hell at the price of sending himself into another dimension as well. Thus he gets sent into olden day Japan, where he meets Inu no Taisho. After spending hundreds of years in the Feudal Era, he learns of the Gang's quest and decides to help them out, which leads to fights, alliances, change, adventure, and love.

**Pairings:** Sesshoumaru/Harry, Kouga/Inuyasha, Miroku/Sango, Hojo/Kagome, Shippou/Rin, others not yet decided.

**Disclaimer:** I am a _fanfiction_ writer, which means I shamelessly steal other people's ideas and twist them to my own benefit. Unfortunately, I own nothing but the plot, which is MINE!

**Disclaimers:** This is a **SLASH** story, which means there will be **guys on guys**. There will be a lot of mentions of **violence**, **swearing**, slight mentions of **mature content** (which means **sex** people) and perhaps some **Mpreg** (I still haven't decided). There will be some **Kagome bashing**, but that will stop in the later chapters, never fear! If anything of the above squicks/disgusts/irritates you, I suggest you leave.

**Author's Note:** Yes, it took me two weeks to write _this_. Pathetic, ne? But honestly, writing the beginning was pure hell. It took me about ten tries to get it right, and then I just used what I had already written and took it in a different direction. Hopefully you guys will like it all the same; I'm so sorry it took so long to get out! Happy New Year, minna!

"Talking" / _'Thinking'_ / _Letters_ / **"Spells/Techniques"** / _"English in Feudal Era"

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**More Than Useless  
****Interlude One: The Western Lord**

It's not easy starting something new. Few things are more intimidating than walking into a brand new situation and having to make the best of it. (Leven Thumps and the Whispered Secret)

"There is a time in every life when paths are chosen, character is forged." (A Great and Terrible Beauty by Libba Bray; Mary Dowd)

Now this is not the end. It is not even the beginning of the end. But it is, perhaps, the end of the beginning. (Sir Winston Churchill)

Barring that natural expression of villainy which we all have, the man looked honest enough. (Mark Twain)

Prejudices are what fools use for reason. (Unknown)

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**Feudal Era, Japan: Unknown Location  
****The 8****th**** of April**

When Harry woke the first thing that registered was the dampness flooding in his clothes. He could feel raindrops dripping onto his face and the musky smell that always accompanied a thunderstorm was in the air. He half-smiled and opened his eyes to see that he was lying under a tree and that the only reason he hadn't yet been drenched to the bone was the thick green leaves protecting him from the worst of the storm. Harry sat up slowly; Kenshin hadn't mentioned where they were going to drop him off, and he hadn't yet gotten his bearings.

He ran a hand through his hair and froze. His hair, which had previously been shoulder-length, had grown; down the bottom of his ass if he was correct. Harry grabbed a strand was shocked to see that the previous dark brown-black had darkened to an ebony black, and that he could see deep red highlights shining through.

He jumped again when he felt something moving on top of his head, and carefully brought up a hand to feel it out. He let out a gasp when he felt furry ears swiveling this way and that. He had figured there would be some changes with the unlocking of his powers, but he hadn't counted on having cat ears!

He stiffly got to his feet and glanced backwards, hoping to all Gods that he wouldn't also have a tail. Thus, when he saw the long, thick black tail tapering behind him, he understandably let out a deep groan. He decided that as soon as he could find a reflective surface, he would see what else had changed with the hair and the arrival of his ears and tail. Quickly Harry made his way away from the tree and headed in a random direction, getting soaked to the bone in his quest to find shelter.

He noticed, while he was walking that the rain didn't really hinder his eyesight at all – he could see perfectly in the gloom, which was unusual. He could also hear what felt like every individual raindrop falling nearby him, and the swish of the trees of the forest he'd left behind. The wet smell of the thunderstorm dominated his nose, but he could smell other scents underneath it; the smell of long gone people and demons who had passed by this area. He supposed that enhanced senses also came with the demon deal.

Eventually he came upon a small town, with houses made of thatch and stone. The streets were empty and muddy from the downpour, and there were no lights in the windows. Harry shivered violently as he walked through the abandoned gate; he would need to find shelter, and soon. Cautiously he knocked on door of the closest house, hoping that the people of the town would be hospitable to a strange hanyou.

A young woman opened the door; she had long dark hair and black eyes. Harry smiled and bowed slightly to her. "I'm so sorry to disturb you," he said, and was bemused to hear that the words that sounded like English to him had the faint undercurrent of some kind of Eastern language. It felt, in a way, like speaking in Parseltonuge. "I'm new here, and I need a place to stay. Is there an inn nearby that I can go to?"

The girl hesitated for a moment before pointing to the left and saying, "There's an inn at the center of town; there should still be rooms free." Abruptly the door was slammed in his face. Harry stood stock still for several moments and then an eyebrow rose slowly on his forehead. He hadn't exactly expected a warm welcome, seeing as he was a stranger knocking at the middle of the night, but the girl had been downright rude. _'What was her problem, I wonder?'_ he asked himself, turning to make his way to the center of town.

He caught sight of a cheery building with large windows that he assumed was the inn. Cautiously (his mind still on the unknown girl's reaction) he made his way inside. A portly man with a thick moustache stood behind a large wooden desk, working busily on some sort of business. Harry cleared his throat, not wanting to step in further and get the carpet and floor all wet. The man looked up and his eyes widened.

"Ah! You are wishing for a room, yes, yes?" the man asked excitedly, hurrying forward. "_Pardonner_, I will bring you some towels," he added in when he saw that his new customer was shivering violently.

_'Even more surprises'_ Harry thought wryly. He recognized 'Pardonner' as French word; but if this was an Eastern country, what was a Frenchman doing here? Before he could think about all of this more deeply, the portly man reappeared, thick white towels in one hand. He smiled, his small moustache twitching upwards and his steady brown eyes twinkling. Harry was eerily reminded of Albus Dumbledore.

"Thanks," Harry said, dropping a short bow and accepting the towels. Relieved, he dried himself off as best he could, but he was impatient to get his clothes off so he could be dry once and for all. When Harry finished drying himself off, the portly man gestured for him to come to the counter.

"Well, _monsieur_, you wish to have a room, yes?" the man said, flipping through a large book that probably contained the records of the inn. "Yes, we have three rooms open; all for 10 gold a night," he looked at Harry expectantly.

Harry panicked. Quickly he shoved his hands in his pockets, wondering if maybe had had left some galleons in there. However, he was instead surprised to find quite a lot of gold coins buried deep in the pocket of his battle robes; more than enough to stay at the inn for a month or two if he needed to. Harry's lips twitched up in a smile; at least Kenshin wasn't stupid enough to send him into a new world without the means to live there.

Carefully he set down 50 of the gold coins; he could decide what to do with the rest of them later. The portly man looked ecastic at having another customer; he gestured sharply and talked wildly, often dipping into French without realizing it.

"My name is Ancelin Benoit, _monsieur_, and you are free to call on me at any time," he said with a beaming smile. "You room number is _sept_; ah, that is, room number seven. Breakfast is at 10 am sharp, and you can leave at any time; however, please inform me before you do so. The maids will service you with whatever you are needing, and I will be here if you are having any questions. Ah, but I am forgetting myself; what is the name of my newest customer?"

Harry tilted his head to the side and, after a moment's thought, said firmly, "Yami Haruki, Benoit-san. If you could point me in the way of my room, I would be most grateful; staying damp doesn't really agree with me."

Benoit seemed most pleased at having a polite customer and was glad to help Harry to his room. He seemed surprised that the hanyou didn't have any luggage, but Harry just told him that he traveled light and left it at that. Finally, after a lot of babbling, Benoit made his way out, leaving Harry to peace and solitude.

Harry sighed and looked around his room. It was medium-sized with dark wood walls and a lighter wood for the ceiling and floor. A medium-sized bed stood off to the side, covered in light blue sheets, with two white pillows placed at the head of the bed neatly. A large desk stood near the single window, and a dark blue throw-rug was thrown on the floor next to it. However, besides the few pieces of furniture, the room was bare and tidy.

Harry stripped down and dried the rest of the excess water off him with the towers Benoit had left behind. Once he felt sufficiently dry, he fell into bed without bothering to pick up after himself and fell immediately asleep. Tomorrow he'd begin his new life in this new universe.

* * *

**Feudal Era, Japan: The Land of the West  
****Five Years Later: The 10****th**** of September**

Yami Haruki, who had once been known as Harry Potter, was interrupted from his work when a loud cry echoed outside of the shop. Annoyed, Haruki wiped his sooty hands on his rough work clothes and strode outside, intending to give whoever was making such a racket a piece of his mind. However when he reached the light of the outside, he was surprised to see people crowding around his shop, talking excitedly. With a raised eyebrow he turned to the nearest person, a human of around 30 years with black hair and eyes.

"What's going on? There're people trying to work in there," he pointed a finger at his shop irritably. The man just laughed however.

"There's no need to work, today boy! Inu no Taisho is coming!" he cried out, before diving into the crowd. Haruki stayed where he was, head tilted to the side in thought, making his long braid shift over his shoulder.

_'Inu no Taisho, hm?'_ he thought with a snort before returning to his shop.

He had already been in this world for five years, although they had seemed to fly by. After renting a room in the Inn, Haruki had set out to find a job and to figure out more about his new home. He was angry and bitter by the end of that day; people had turned him away because of his very noticeable hanyou ears and tail. Nobody talked to him, only muttered and glared at him from a safe distance. Harry had left the town after his five days at Benoit's Inn, traveling across the land, which he later found was called the Land of the West. He had decided to stay in a popular town called Kaoin, where he found a blacksmith who was willing to train him.

After three years he set up his own smith off to the side of town, and he had had fairly good business. He wasn't a master blacksmith, but he was fairly good at it. He had even made his own weapons; three very different swords, four knives, and two unique metal fans **(1)**. He still hadn't had time to learn how to use them; Haruki was hoping that as soon as he got enough money he could pay for a teacher.

He didn't know why the villagers were so excited at seeing their "famed" leader. Haruki had heard of Inu no Taisho, the Inu youkai who ruled the Land of the West. He had never met the Lord, but he heard stories wherever he went about his bravery, skill, and good looks. However he had never trusted leaders; he had a particular aversion to them since Dumbledore had manipulated his past life. Haruki snorted and looked at the metal that he had been heating by the fire. With a low curse he drew it out with a pair of tongs; while he had been distracted by the noise outside, the metal had heated too far for him to plunge into his water bucket like he had planned. Growling he set it aside, letting it cool off slowly.

Just as he was about to set another piece of metal on the fire, the door to his shop opened, releasing the little tinkling bell that Haruki had placed above it. With a muttered curse he wiped his hands again and left the back room. When he saw who was standing inside his shop, however, he stopped short with wide green eyes.

The silver haired man looked up when he heard footsteps and gave the shocked Haruki a good-natured smile, "You would be Yami Haruki then?" he asked in a low voice.

Haruki shook off his shock and answered bluntly, "Yes. Were you expecting someone else to be in here?"

Inu no Taisho, the Lord of the West, looked surprised but then an amused smirk curled at the edge of his lips, "No, I suppose not. I have a proposition for you, Yami-san."

Haruki snorted, "Whenever I hear that, it never means anything good."

Inu no Taisho looked even more amused, "I promise that it is good news."

Haruki gave a long-suffering sigh and leaned against his counter comfortably before saying, "Alright, I'll hear you out, but I make no promises."

Inu no Taisho nodded, as if this was perfectly reasonable. "Recently the blacksmith in my castle died of a heart attack," he started to explain. Haruki groaned inwardly; he could see where this was going already. "I've been looking for a new one, and I heard that an excellent blacksmith by the name of Yami Haruki was living in Kaoin. So I'd like to ask; would you mind being the royal blacksmith, Yami-san?"

Haruki thought about it. It wouldn't be a bad deal, working for this guy, even if he didn't like royalty. His business wasn't particularly popular, and he could abandon it without feeling any loss.

"How much money will I get?" he asked directly.

Inu no Taisho looked surprised yet again at his bluntness, but he answered, "200,000 yen yearly, and it could be more, depending on the weapons you make."

Haruki's eyes widened. That was twice as much as he got now, even in such a popular city as Kaoin.

"Where will I live?" he asked suspiciously.

"In the castle; we have plenty of extra rooms. You may bring any of your tools and personal items with you; the forge is still where the previous blacksmith left it." Inu no Taisho smiled.

Haruki continued to consider, his head tilted to the side in thought. The thought of free bed and board, as well as all the money he could make was appealing……

"Alright," he said reluctantly. "I'll be your blacksmith. When do we leave?"

Inu no Taisho smile widened and he answered, "As soon as you can get your things together. However, Yami-san, I have one more thing to ask of you," Haruki raised an eyebrow. He knew it would be too good to be true if that had been it. "Can I see some of your work?"

Haruki tilted his head and then nodded. He darted back inside the back room and pulled out his favorite sword before returning to Inu no Taisho. Silently he handed to the other man, who's golden eyes widened when he saw the beautiful weapon.

The long blade was made of unique black steel that Haruki had been lucky to find, and had to spend half of his yearly savings to buy. The hilt was dyed a dark, dreamy gray with no decorations. Faint white and gray runes marked the side of the blade, travelling from the tip to the hilt. The blade's edge was razor sharp, and it gleamed even in the dim light of the shop. Haruki had named it _Kokushibyou_ or _Black Death_.

"It's a beautiful sword," Inu no Taisho said with admiration. He whipped the blade around rapidly, and Haruki smirked when he saw the Inu youkai's astonishment at the sword's perfect balance and weight.

"It is the first one I made for myself," Haruki said, taking the beautiful weapon out of Inu no Taisho's hands. "Is that a good enough sample for you, Inu no Taisho?"

"You can just call me Kamin," the man murmured, his eyes still on the sword. "And yes, that is more than good enough. I had heard rumors that you were skilled, but I didn't know that you could make weapons like that."

Haruki raised an eyebrow as he started to gather his tools and weapons; he had no other possessions. He ignored the praise the Western Lord was giving him and instead focused on the information he had gotten. "Kamin is your real name then?" he asked curiously.

The Inu youkai nodded, "Isei Kamin is my real name. Most have forgotten it, since I use it so little."

"Hm," Haruki hummed thoughtfully, still packing away his tools. The room was silent as the long haired kurohyou finished his business and went into the back room to get the rest of his stuff. Kamin went to lean against the edge of the door, eyeing the now bare room curiously.

Honestly, this hadn't really been what he was expecting when he came looking for the blacksmith. He had been expecting a fancy shop; the kind of thing that would cost a lot of money. Instead he found a dusty, old forge with well-used, obviously hand-made tools and a petite, blunt blacksmith. His lips quirked; the people who talked about Yami Haruki had obviously never met him. They said he was well-mannered, polite, snobby, rich……all the sorts of things Kamin could tell he wasn't in the short moments he had spoken to him.

The man was to the point and honest. He dressed in well-worn leather and cotton, and obviously had no use for anything that he didn't need. He had made his own tools, and his own weapons if the black sword was anything to go by, and Kamin had the feeling that the little blacksmith was independent and stubborn.

However, he was puzzled by the blacksmith. There were jagged green marks across his cheeks, and a silvery lightening bolt visible under his shaggy black bangs; the markings of a daiyoukai. But his smell was that of a hanyou; what breed, Kamin couldn't tell, but his senses were screaming that it was some form of neko. _'Maybe that's why he wears that headband……'_ he mused thoughtfully. Most hanyous had ears or a tail; a physical reminder of their blood. But none of the stories had ever said anything about Haruki being a hanyou, so he must have hid his traits skillfully during the years. Kamin smirked; he had a feeling his castle was going to get a lot more interesting with Yami Haruki in it.

* * *

Haruki looked up at the tall, imposing castle with an annoyed scowl. 

"Well doesn't this look warm and cozy," he murmured under his breath. He wasn't surprised when he heard Kamin give a choked laugh; Inu hearing was supposed to be particularly good. But he didn't take back his sarcastic words - the castle looked cold, dreary, and depressing. The thick stone walls rose up high into the air, all of them colored a deep, dark gray. The only spot of brightness on them were the occasional stained glass window and the crimson red flags swirling in the wind at the very top of the towers, the bright white Inu glowing brightly even in the dull twilight.

Haruki sighed and watched as the huge wooden gate opened to admit them inside. A general cheer rose up from the guards as they realized that their Lord had come home. Snorting he walked in after Kamin, folding his arms loosely against his chest and his bag bouncing solidly against his back.

They entered the castle without any hassle, although any servants they came across bowed and simpered in front of Kamin, making Haruki scowl in disgust. The Inu daiyoukai, however, was used to their simpering and merely smiled and thanked them. He continued to show Haruki around the castle, pointing out the main rooms and major places.

"The dining hall is done that way," the white-haired youkai said, waving a hand down a long hall on the first floor. "It's connected to the ball room and the kitchen. Upstairs is my room and my son, Sesshoumaru's room, as well as the guest rooms. There is also the library on the second floor, and the smith is right outside. Your rooms will be on the first floor with myself and my son."

"Will I ever get to meet this son of yours, Kamin-sama," Haruki said, with a voice heavily inlaid with sarcasm. Kamin shot him a look that was both disapproving and amused.

"Yes, you'll meet Sesshoumaru in a little while. I assume you wish to unpack your things, Haruki? I'll show you to your smith and your room then."

Haruki followed Kamin up the strong, stone stairs curiously. He _was_ wondering about his forge and his room……But he did wish that his new "Lord" didn't automatically assume.

Kamin led him down the hall to a set of double oaken doors. Haruki raised an eyebrow but didn't comment on the elaborate golden Inu knocker, instead opting to push open the doors to see what lay inside them. The other eyebrow joined the first, raising up on his forehead until they nearly disappeared under his hairline.

The room was definitely more flamboyant than he would ever want. The stone walls and floor had been smoothed away and replaced with a dark, shining marble and elegant crimson red rugs. A large bed stood to the side its thick, crimson hangings reminding Haruki eerily of his days back home, in Gryffindor. A medium-sized window over-looked the courtyard, showing the now dark sky and the lack of activity outside. Over to the side, there was a door leading to the bath, and there was a fireplace in the corner. The large closet next to the bed completed the whole picture.

"Fancy," was all Haruki said before dumping the small amount of personal possessions he had brought with him on the bed. He never noticed the twitch in Kamin's eyebrow, or how his new boss grimaced at the blacksmith's lack of admiration for the stunning rooms.

"Your forge is out back," Kamin added through gritted teeth. Haruki followed him out of the door cheerfully his bag of tools still slung casually over one shoulder.

However they were stopped before they managed to get there by a teenager who looked like a carbon copy of Kamin, only years younger. Haruki supposed it was Inu no Taisho's son, Sesshoumaru. The boy was dressed in a simple white yukata, and his long silver hair was braided back away from his sharp, handsome face.

"Chichi-sama?" the boy asked cautiously, steely golden eyes narrowing in Haruki's direction. "Who is this?"

"This, son, is our new blacksmith, Yami Haruki. Haruki say hello to my son, Sesshoumaru," Kamin said with a grin.

Haruki bowed and gave a mild smile, knowing that acting so easy-going irritated more people than it soothed, "It's a pleasure to meet you Sesshoumaru-san. I do hope you'll take good care of me."

Sesshoumaru eyed him with something between annoyance and dismissal before turning to his father and saying flatly, "He's strange."

Kamin swallowed a laugh and Haruki just smiled, making Sesshoumaru scowl. The littler youkai turned away from the new blacksmith, instead focusing his attention to his father. He had waited for a long time for Kamin to come back, and he wouldn't be deterred by some annoying blacksmith!

"Chichi-sama, are we going to train soon?" he asked bluntly.

Kamin considered it with a smile and then nodded, "Yes. I just need to show Haruki to his forge, and then we may train Sesshoumaru."

"Ahem," Haruki said, getting the attention of both of the Inu youkai. "May I watch?" he noticed the incredulous looks from both father and son and smiled sheepishly. "I've made weapons for myself, but I haven't had the time to learn to use them. I thought maybe if I watched you train I could learn how to weild them……" he trailed off awkwardly.

However anxiety was wasted as Kamin said, "That would be fine, Haruki. I'll see if I can get a trainer for you; letting such beautiful weapons rot away from disuse is a waste." He turned back to his son, who was looking somewhat disgruntled at having his personal time with his father intruded upon. "Sesshoumaru, do you wish to come with us to Haruki's forge; then we can make our way to the dojo as soon as I'm done there."

The boy nodded and the trio made their way out of the castle in silence. Close to the front door of the castle a little hut stood to the side. It was small, short, and made out of solid gray stone. Kamin led his son and blacksmith inside.

The inside of the hut was plain but cozy. A large forge stood to the side, and a long line of blacksmith tools lined the walls. A large hole had been cut into the top of the building to allow the smoke from the fire to billow out into open air, but currently a thatch cover was pulled over it to keep the weather out of the hut. Various pieces of metal were scattered around the forge, bigger pieces placed by the back door which led to the rest of the materials.

Haruki examined the hut silently, green eyes jumping from place to place. Slowly he walked up to the line of tools and took in each of them, one by one. Finally he turned back to the Inu youkai.

"It's good Kamin-sama," he said bluntly. "I'm going to need more metal, and I'll be making some changes. However your previous blacksmith took good care of his tools; I'll be able to use most of these along with my own.

He carefully laid down the bundle of tools that he had brought with him on the single piece of furniture in the hut; a stone table that was close to the forge. Then he turned to Kamin and Sesshoumaru with a mild smile on his face.

"Now, we were going to do some training, were we not?"

* * *

Haruki watched with interest as Sesshoumaru dashed at his father, a long katana in one hand and poisonous claws outstretched on the other. 

Watching father and son fight was fascinating for the kurohyou. Their style of fighting was much more focused on speed and fluidity than brute strength and power; it was more of a dance than a fight, in some ways. It appealed to Haruki in some ways, but personally he liked a blunter, straight-forward way of fighting better, like any true Gryffindor.

He smiled wryly in the background as he watched Sesshoumaru get cut by his father and jump back in time avoid another blow. Watching them together reminded him so much of his training with the Order back in his own world, when the weight of the world still rested on his shoulders. They had never been easy on him either; they hadn't had the time or patience to coddle him into learning. He'd had to take it in the hard way; thought experience and determination.

Shaking away the thoughts of the past he instead focused on the present fight. Kamin, he observed, wasn't bleeding at all, but he could smell the bruises on him left by his son. Sesshoumaru, on the other hand, was bleeding in the leg, his left arm, and his cheek and he had a sprained ankle and a lot of bruises if Haruki's nose was correct.

He'd learned more about his "youkai senses" during the five years he had spent in the Land of the West. All of his senses had become more pronounced, but it was really his hearing and sight that had improved the most. However, his sense of smell had increased so much that he could scent any kind of injury, people, youkai, and many other odors in the air and on a person or animal's body. It was rather eerie when he had discovered it, actually.

"Do you yield?" Haruki blinked as Kamin's voice cut through his thoughts and looked up to see the older youkai pinning his son to the wall, his sword placed against his delicate throat. Stilling the instinctive urge to help the pup out – kurohyou were protective over cubs – he watched the scene quietly.

"Hai," Sesshoumaru's voice was soft enough to be a whisper. Kamin instantly let him go and stepped back, allowing the boy to step away from the wall. The dojo was awkwardly silent for a minute.

Haruki sighed and stood up, fluidly moving to where Sesshoumaru stood, his eyes downcast and his blade tightly gripped in one white-knuckled hand. Gently he tipped the boy's head up to meet his eyes, examining the cuts and bruises on the pale skin critically.

"Hm……Some would say that pain is a good motivator, but I always thought that they only said that because they never had to go through it," Haruki said with a smile. Sesshoumaru only continued to watch him with wary golden eyes. "Sit, cub. I'll heal your cuts, and then you'll fight against your father tomorrow and do your best to win."

He ushered the boy into a sitting position and carefully gathered his magic, letting it smooth over the skin of his face and heal the cuts and bruises. Slowly he moved down the boy's body, healing every cut and bruise until he reached the sprained ankle. Kamin did nothing to stop him, instead opting to watch his new blacksmith curiously. It was surprising that he was a healer as well as a blacksmith; how many talents did Haruki have?

Sesshoumaru didn't know what to think about his father's newest employee. The man was irritatingly mild, blunt, and honest, and yet he was also kind enough to heal his wounds and give him encouraging words. Sesshoumaru didn't trust him, as he didn't trust anyone beside his father, but he couldn't help but feel intrigued by Yami Haruki.

Maybe he would spend some time getting to know him better.

* * *

**Author's Note:** -cries- Yes, that's it. I think this is the shortest chapter I've ever written in my life. But never fear! The next chapter is half-way written, so it will be coming out much more quickly than this one did. Hopefully you all enjoyed this one! Thanks for your wonderful reviews minna-san; I did my best to answer all of your questions and comments. 

**(1)** Readers of AIT will recognize these weapons; it seems I can't stay away from fans, ne?


	3. Chaper One: The Stranger

**Author's Notes: **Thank you for all your wonderful reviews!

"Talking" / _'Thinking'_ / _Letters_ / **"Spells/Techniques"** / _"English in Feudal Era"_

**This chapter is dedicated to TSURAI NO SHI, who I bow down to and worship for being the very FIRST person to draw fanart for this story (and what a great one it is too!). You can find the link to the picture in my profile.

* * *

**

**More Than Useless  
****Chapter One: The Stranger**

"Never refuse any advance of friendship, for if nine out of ten bring you nothing, one alone may repay you." (Madame de Tencin)

"We're harmless as kittens."  
"More so," said Galdo. "Kittens have claws and piss on things indiscriminately. (The Lies of Locke Lamora by Scott Lynch)

"People are never machines, even when they want to be. You have to start somewhere." (The Charioteer by Mary Renault)

If everything seems to be going well, you have obviously overlooked something. (Unknown)

And if you look closely to your left, you can see my sanity zooming away. Wave goodbye! (Unknown)

* * *

**Feudal Era, Japan  
****September 28****th**

Inuyasha sighed as he heard Miroku and Sango arguing _yet again_ about the monk's perverted habits. Kagome was playing with Shippou by the stream they had decided to stop at, but the tinkling laughter of the girl and the fox-kit were overridden by the angry pair sitting nearby them. The hanyou's ears hurt from just listening to them all. Sighing he stood up and walked away, doing his best not to snap at the group. He was thankful when no one called out to ask where he was going. Right now he really needed some _space_.

Inuyasha's nerves were on end. Naraku hadn't been sighted for months, and not a stir of trouble that they had encountered had had the nasty demon's scent on it. It was as if the other hanyou had disappeared, and while his pack may rejoice about this, it made Inuyasha uneasy. When Naraku was constantly fighting he could be prepared and ready. All of this waiting made his pack less cautious, which would be dangerous when Naraku emerged again.

The white-haired hanyou sighed, crossing his arms against his chest. He leaned against a nearby tree, his golden eyes fixed on the ground intensely. He didn't know what to do about the Naraku problem. His pack didn't know of his worries, and he didn't want to burden any of them, but keeping it all to himself was slowly making him go crazy. Everyone needed someone to lean on, and while his friends were willing, none of them were strong enough to support someone with as heavy burdens as Inuyasha's.

Inuyasha took a deep breath in and then stiffened. There was a strange scent in the air……something like ice, snow and the dark musty scent of a forest after a rainstorm. The hanyou was instantly on his feet, golden eyes darting around the trees, trying to find the intruder.

"So he finally notices," a deep voice came from the shadows of a nearby tree. A short figure dropped from the high branches, landing in a low crouch. Slowly the figure moved forward until Inuyasha could make out his features.

The stranger had long black hair with red highlights tied back in a tight braid and cat-like black ears perched on top of his head, marking him as a hanyou. Titled, eerie green eyes with slit pupils stood out in his sharp face, and two thick green jagged lines marked each of his cheeks. A long black cat's tail waved lazily behind him. The man was dressed in a black shirt with sleeves so long they covered everything but the tips of his fingers and plain black pants that were tight against his thighs and baggy at his feet. Combat boots covered his feet, and a broadsword lay across his back. Two more swords were attached to his waist.

Inuyasha stared – he had seen some crazy characters during his travels, but none of them were close to this guy. The man's eyes were fixed on his face, and Inuyasha noted that some sort of shadow passed over his eyes before he gave a friendly smile. The Inu hanyou was instantly on his guard; people who were nice to him always ended up being his enemies.

The man swept into a low bow, "Yami Haruki, at your service Isei Inuyasha."

Inuyasha's eyes narrowed in confusion, "Isei?" He'd never known his last name; his mother had never told him his old man's real name. He had always preferred to be known as simply Inuyasha.

Haruki looked surprised and confused, "You were never told your father's name?! What has Sesshoumaru been doing these years?"

Inuyasha scowled, "He's been trying to kill me, the asshole. And how the hell do you know my father's name?" The man didn't look older than Inuyasha's 250 years.

"Why, because I knew him of course," Haruki answered, looking troubled. His tail had bristled out behind him, and his ears were flat against his head. A furrow marked the smooth skin between his eyebrows.

Inuyasha gaped – besides Myouga, Totosai, and Sesshoumaru he didn't know any people that knew his father. To think that this man had just popped in out of nowhere……Inuyasha's hand crept down to clutch at the hilt of Tessaiga. Haruki noticed the motion and chuckled.

"Well you're cautious, at least, and that's a good thing. However, I'm not here to hurt you. I have a proposal for you and your pack mates – if we could go back so I could talk to all of you?" he said politely.

Inuyasha eyed the man for a minute longer, trying to make out if he had any bad intentions. The green eyes were blank however and no emotion besides mild acceptance passed over his face. Sighing in defeat, Inuyasha led the man to his pack that were all in the same positions they had been when he left. He could defend them all, if this turned out to be a mistake on his part. However, a part of Inuyasha didn't want this to be mistake; to find another link to his father, the man he admired the most was more than he could dream of.

At first his pack didn't notice their leader and the stranger, but Shippou soon turned to see what the strange scent in the air was, making Kagome look and screech……after that everyone's attention was riveted to the pair. Haruki bowed shortly to them, making Inuyasha raise an eyebrow – for some reason the demon didn't respect his pack as much as he respected the Inu hanyou.

"This is Yami Haruki," Inuyasha told his pack, who were all eyeing the newcomer with various forms of suspicion. "He says he knew my father, and that he something to talk to us about."

His pack calmed somewhat, but most of them still eyed Haruki warily. Kagome alone gave him a completely friendly smile. Inuyasha shot the demon a look to start.

"Ah……well as the gaki said, I used to know Inu no Taisho," was it Inuyasha's imagination or was their laughter in Haruki's voice as he said this? "I left after he died, to travel. When I heard about Inuyasha's sword I figured he was the old man's son. I came out and observed you guys for a little while."

Inuyasha frowned – he hadn't sensed Haruki around before a little while ago. Haruki, as if sensing his question, flashed a smile full of fang.

"I'm much better at hiding myself than you are at sensing, gaki. After all, I have had hundreds of years to practice."

Inuyasha growled at Haruki who just shrugged playfully. Kagome, however, screeched out, "What are you talking about?! Inuyasha is the BEST tracker we have!"

"Because you are a group of humans, and kitlings," Haruki said mildly. Kagome flushed. "Inuyasha is very skilled, I agree with you there, but he is not all-powerful. He still is still a teenager in the view of the youkai world – he has much to learn."

Inuyasha nodded reluctantly. He knew that he was still young, but he didn't like being told what to do by someone else – if he had to learn, he could do it on his own! He'd done everything else on his own, why not this? Haruki watched the younger hanyou with twinkling eyes; he knew exactly what was going through Inuyasha's head.

"Anyhow, back to my position. I want to help you guys out – give you some better training and help you bring down Naraku," here the group began to look wary and suspicious again. Haruki sighed. "Honestly! You act as if you've been the least bit secretive. You've been travelling around looking for Naraku, and you seriously expect people not to know that? I heard it from an old gossip-monger 50 miles from here!"

Kagome grumbled, "Well it's not like we wanted everybody to know."

"Then you should learn to be more discreet," Haruki said, his voice stern. "Do you even think about changing your clothes into something that might actually blend in better? A miko's robes for one? You stand out dressed as skimpily as you are, and that makes people notice and remember you."

Kagome gaped and then flushed, "Actually……I never really thought about it. Nobody seemed to care, so I just didn't ask."

Haruki sighed, "You're a child, so it's understandable," he ignored Kagome's look of outrage at being called a child and turned to the others. "But you all are older and wiser. You should know better than to cart around a half-dressed girl; I'm surprised there hasn't been anyone asking for her services."

"Services?' Kagome asked confusedly.

"Whores dress very much like you do in this day and age," Haruki said coolly, making Kagome sputter and turn very red in the face.

Inuyasha butted in, "I'm always there to be beat away guys like that!"

"Yes, but you won't always _be_ there Inuyasha!" Haruki snapped out and then sighed. He ran a hand over his face. "I didn't want to lecture you, but you _need_ to be subtle. Your lives depend on your ability to sneak around, not on your ability to be recklessly noble. Honor is all well and good, but it doesn't mean shit to a corpse."

The group was silent. Then Sango spoke, "How did you know Inuyasha's father, Haruki-san?" she sounded plainly curious. After all, the group knew about the famous Inu no Taisho, but they had never really met a person who knew him besides Myouga and Sesshoumaru.

"Just call me Haruki, taijiya," he told her tiredly. "Kamin was my best friend and my general. I was his right hand during the Youkai Wars."

Sango's eyebrow raised, "Youkai Wars? I haven't heard of them."

"You wouldn't have. No offense, but since slayers seem to like to kill us so much we don't often tell them much," Haruki said, making Sango snort. "The Youkai Wars were long, difficult, and entirely too complicated to explain in anything short of days. Perhaps, when we have time I'll sit you all down for story time. However now we have……" he trailed off, nose rising to the air.

"An Ookami?" he said, surprised. "And a royal one at that."

Inuyasha cursed, "Kouga's coming!"

Haruki tapped his chin thoughtfully, "That would be Lord Kouga, Ruler of the North, correct? He's the alpha of the Ookami tribes?"

"Add all-around pain in my ass and you've got him down flat," Inuyasha grumbled.

Haruki gave him an innocent look, "Ah, you and Kouga-san are lovers than, Inuyasha-kun?"

Inuyasha turned beet red in less than a second, "_What_?! Of course not, you pervert! How the hell did you get that crazy idea?!"

Haruki answered with an innocent smile, "_All around pain in my ass_ could mean many things Inuyasha." Inuyasha's eyes narrowed; the man was playing with him, he could sense it.

Before he could retort, a whirl of dust stopped next to him, and Kouga stood there grinning, his long black ponytail tangled and his blue eyes dancing. He instantly ran to Kagome, giving her sweet words of love and asking about her health. Haruki frowned, but no one noticed his distress. Miroku and Sango kept their eyes on the new arrival, waiting for the outburst they were sure Inuyasha was going to have.

It never came.

Inuyasha shrugged, muttered under his breath, and then turned to Haruki. The older demon was sure he was the only one that noticed the tick in Kouga's eyebrow. He smirked: _'so that's what he's trying to do……'_

"Ah, Kouga-san, it's a pleasure to finally meet you," Haruki said formally, a mild smile on his face. Kouga's turned to the hanyou and his eyebrow rose when Haruki didn't drop into a bow. The Ookami sniffed lightly and his eyes widened.

"Kurohyou?" he asked incredously.

Haruki's smile sharpened, "Ah, I always do underestimate the power of the Ookami's nose. It was a mistake Kamin made as well. Yes, I am a kurohyou hanyou."

Kouga's eyebrows nearly disappeared into his hairline, "Hanyou? You smell like a daiyoukai."

"I'm that as well," Haruki said calmly. Kouga looked intrigued, but Inuyasha cut in irritably before the Ookami could ask anything else.

"You're a _kurohyou_?" he cried out incredulously. "They've been extinct for centuries!"

Haruki shrugged, "They've been _in hiding_ for centuries, more like. However, they are rare; I am the last of my kind." The hanyou turned to Kouga again and asked, "What brings you here, Kouga-san?"

The Ookami shook his head to clear away his confusion and answered gruffly, "I just came to see Kagome; I heard she was in the area."

Haruki frowned, "You abandoned your pack for a social visit?" he asked with disapproval. Kouga winced.

"No. I was searching for Naraku around here, and I scented the mutt," he pointed a finger at Inuyasha. Haruki rolled his eyes.

"He has lines that are just as good as, and probably better than yours Ookami, and you'd do well to remember that," he said harshly. No son of Kamin's would be treated that way in his presence. Kouga looked annoyed and Inuyasha looked startled. Haruki bit back a growl; didn't any of his pack defend him when Kouga did this?

"He's the son of Inu no Taisho, Isei Kamin, who was once a dear friend of mine," Haruki hissed. "And so help me, if I hear you insult his son again like that I'll make sure that you never make pups for the rest of your miserable life." Kouga winced and hurriedly nodded. Haruki, satisfied that the Ookami was subdued and respectful, turned back to Inuyasha, who was looking at him with shock and, when he looked close enough, gratitude. Haruki snorted; as if he'd let anyone insult Kamin's child.

"Now, what were we talking about?" he asked with a smile. Everyone around him sweated; was this guy bi-polar or something?

"If you were going to join my pack or not, Haruki," Inuyasha said, folding his arms across his chest and watching the kurohyou hanyou with suspicious eyes. His earlier surprise at being defended had vanished, and he was wary once more, even after the kurohyou hanyou had spoken up for him so viciously. Haruki hid a smirk; _'good, he's learning.'_

"I want to help you because I was friends with your father, and no son of his will die while I'm still alive and breathing," Haruki said solidly. "Plus, your little quest sounds interesting, and this Naraku character……I know of him."

Inuyasha eyed him oddly but, after a moment of thought and careful consideration (or as careful as Inuyasha could get), he said, "Alright. But any funny business, and you're outta here Haruki!"

Haruki bowed mockingly to Inuyasha, "As you wish. There will be no funny business from me, Inuyasha." Then he straightened and let out a long, piercing whistle. Inuyasha stiffened, but didn't do anything more than that; he had the feeling he could trust this strange hanyou to keep his word. However his hand still twitched towards where Tessaiga lay at his hip.

Two figures rushed into the clearing; one flying through the air, and one bounding on the earth. Slowly they came into focus, and the group could make out two animals. One was a large, jet black eagle with large golden eyes that landed on Haruki's shoulder when it reached him. The other was a medium-sized spotted cat with dark gray fur and sharp green-yellow eyes. Haruki turned to the astonished group and grinned.

"Meet Kaemon," Haruki pointed to the hawk, "and Asa," he pointed to the cat. "They are my guardians and guides; they've travelled quite a bit with me over the years. They don't have any particular "special" powers, but Asa can change her size, like your little kitling over there can," he waved a hand at Kirara.

Asa gave them all a sharp smirk that didn't belong on the face of a cat, and started to grow until her head reached Haruki's waist. The short hanyou smiled slightly and reached down to pet the cat's ears, making her purr lightly. Kaemon, the eagle, cawed importantly and Haruki laughed, as if he understood what the animal was saying.

"They will travel with us as well," the hanyou added in softly. "I doubt that I could make them go away, Inuyasha," he added in when he saw that the Inu hanyou looked ready to protest. "You're welcome to try if you think you can do it." But with one look at Asa's glowing green-yellow eyes and Kaemon's angrily outstretched wings Inuyasha backed off.

"Now as for where we should be going," Haruki started. "I've learned that Naraku is currently in hiding somewhere northeast; we should head that way and see what we find. Meanwhile I will be training all of you."

"Training!" Kagome protested loudly. "We don't need training!"

"Yes, and that's why you manage to get yourselves nearly killed every time you meet with Naraku," Haruki said with a voice heavily laden with sarcasm. "Don't kid yourself girl. You've only managed to survive thus far out of pure luck. And luck won't be enough to save you every time."

"Miroku," he barked out suddenly. The monk jumped, looking up with wide purple eyes as Haruki focused his full attention on him. "You seal work is excellent, and you fight well. However you rely too much on Kaazana," Miroku's mouth opened to protest, but Haruki held up a hand to cut him off. "Yes, you're doing well in cutting back, but you _still_ rely too much on it. I can help you with learning new seals, and with fighting, but your real flaw is your hand."

"Sango," he said, turning to the taijiya. "Your fighting is good; you need to work more on close-range combat. As far as I could tell, you attack from far away, with your boomerang weapon; I believe you called it Hiroikotsu, correct?" he didn't wait for her to respond as he continued. "Your teamwork with Kirara is excellent, but you also need to focus on single attacks if you're ever separated."

"Shippou, you are the weakest of the pack, but only because you are young and don't have sufficient training," Haruki continued, turning to the small fox kit. "Kitsune magic is focused on illusions and trickery; I've studied under a couple of kitsune's so I can start your training. However, if you ever want to become a master you'll have to go to the Land of the South where the kitsune youkai reside. We'll also need to start training you in a weapon."

"Kagome, you need new clothes," the girl sputtered. "Yes; right now you stick out like a sore thumb. Your archery needs more work; 7 out of 10 times you miss your target and 9 out of 10 times you hit a different place than what you were aiming for. And we also need to work on your control of your miko powers."

"Inuyasha," Haruki paused for a moment, locking green to gold. "Your skills were Tessaiga need to be enhanced. You need more training with hand-to-hand combat, and with tactics. And I will be instructing you on the youkai ways, since Sesshoumaru seems to be neglecting his duties."

"Why does Inuyasha have to learn about demons?" Kagome screeched out. Haruki winced and rubbed his sensitive cat ears; bloody hell, didn't the girl have a lower volume setting?

"Because he is a _youkai_, ningen!" he snapped out, getting frustrated with her. "What else do you expect?! He's not a full-blood human; he'll never be one! You seem to forget that there will always be another side to him; a youkai side that has more depth and power than your child-like mind could ever imagine!"

Kagome wasn't the only one pale and wide-eyed at the end of his tirade; the rest of the pack, as well as Inuyasha and Kouga were as well. Haruki sighed and reeled his temper back in with the iron control he had only managed to achieve over hundreds of years.

"You can never understand the life of a hanyou, Kagome, so don't even try. No matter how much you wish for Inuyasha to be human, he can never be. There is youkai blood running through his veins as well, and he can never ignore that. It's better for him to learn about it and be able to control it then ignore it and possibly hurt someone."

The group was silent for a moment until Inuyasha nodded in agreement and broke the tension. "Fine, we'll do this your way Haruki. We're gonna head to the north-east," he told his pack. "Haruki and I will scout ahead. Ookami, are you staying with us?" Kouga looked startled at being acknowledged but he nodded hurriedly. "Then you're staying with my pack until we get back."

The two hanyous looked at each other and then, with a joint nod they disappeared into the trees, leaving behind a bewildered pack and an annoyed Ookami.

* * *

Haruki could feel his eyebrow twitching. Inuyasha kept sneaking looks at him that, no doubt the hanyou thought were _subtle_. However, like Kamin, Inuyasha couldn't be subtle to save his life. His brother, on the other hand……Haruki shook away that thought and stopped abruptly on a tree branch and turned with a growl to look at the younger hanyou.

"_What_ exactly is so fascinating about my face?!" he snapped out. He was already agitated enough from having to stir up old memories to satisfy Inuyasha and his pack's curiosity, and he really didn't want to have to deal with being stared at like a circus freak as well.

Inuyasha looked startled at being addressed so directly but he regained his confidence soon enough. "How did you know all that stuff about us?" he asked. If Haruki was going to blunt, he might as well be as well.

Haruki relaxed. That was an easy question to answer, unlike the ones about his past with Kamin. "I've been watching you for three months," he answered easily, ignoring the indignant look that passed across Inuyasha's face as he said this. "I've seen some of your battles, and I watched that girl Kagome enter the Bone Eater's Well and disappear for days. With her strange clothes, it wasn't hard to figure out she was from a different time."

"You figured out how to train us just by watching a few fights?" Inuyasha sounded skeptical. "And how did you know that the Bone-Eater's well led to a different time?"

Haruki smiled, "I lived through the Youkai wars, Inuyasha. Finding weaknesses in a person's fighting is what kept me alive. As for the Bone-Eater's well……I've had a few encounters dealing with it."

The Inu hanyou perked up, curiosity spreading across his face, "What were the Youkai Wars, anyhow? You keep mentioning them." He tucked away the information about Kagome's well into the back of his mind; he'd be sure to ask Haruki what _exactly_ he meant by that later.

Haruki shrugged gracefully, keeping his eyes and ears open for any threat as he answered Inuyasha, "I can't give you a full definition, because then we'd be here all day. But your father fought in the Youkai Wars, as did Sesshoumaru and I." Inuyasha made a face at his half-brother's name but otherwise remained quiet. "The leader of the enemy was a Ryuu youkai named Ryuukotsusei."

Inuyasha started, "I know him! I _fought_ him!"

Haruki seemed surprised, "You did? You must have defeated him, if you're still alive……The Ryuukotsusei I knew would never leave an enemy alive."

Inuyasha nodded, "I killed him with _Bakuryuuha_," he explained.

The older hanyou raised an eyebrow, impressed despite himself. It took a powerful youkai to be able to even _handle_ Tessaiga, but to know that Inuyasha had accessed and used one of the major techniques, at such a young age……_'Kenshin was right.'_ He thought. _'He will be powerful.'_

"But Myouga said that when they first fought, Ryuukotsusei was sealed with the old man's claw," Inuyasha added, a puzzled frown stretching across his face.

"The first time they fought, face to face, yes," Haruki conceded. "But just because the dragon was the leader of the army didn't mean he fought with his men. He only came out to battle with Kamin when he thought his victory was assured. And that was his downfall."

"Fighting my father?" Inuyasha asked, confused.

"Assuming that things would go as planned," Haruki corrected quietly. "Your victory is never assured, no matter how well things seem to be going."

Inuyasha was quiet for a moment until he burst out, "Hey! You managed to sneak a lesson in on me, you sneaky little kitten! I didn't want any moral shit I only wanted to know about the Youkai Wars!"

"Kitten!" Haruki cried, though inwardly he was more amused than angry. "Who're you calling kitten, you puppy?! I'm 547 years old, which is, what, 300 more than you? You should respect your elder's kid!"

Inuyasha stuck his tongue out at him, "Why respect such an old geezer like you?"

"Why I oughta……" Haruki glared at the upstart hanyou. "Kami-sama, why did Kamin ever have children? I should've known _one_ of them would be exactly like him……"

"What do you mean, exactly like him?" Inuyasha asked his playfulness dying as curiosity replaced it. "From everything I've heard from Myouga," _'and Sesshoumaru'_ he added silently, "it seemed like the old man was some sort of god."

Haruki laughed, "Isei Kamin, a god? He'd be rolling with laughter if he ever heard anyone say it." The kurohyou looked up at the darkening sky and frowned, all of his playfulness wiped from his face. "C'mon kid. I'll tell you more about your dad when we get back to your pack and your little buddy."

"He is NOT my buddy!" Inuyasha said, blushing as he remembered the earlier conversation.

Haruki grinned, "You sure about that?"

Inuyasha closed his eyes and counted to ten silently, trying to rein his wild temper in. No wonder his old man had died; who wouldn't with Yami Haruki to bother them?

* * *

**Author's Note:** Yes, that's where it ends. Next chapter is another Interlude, so be prepared. And geez guys; over 50 reviews for just 2 chapters? I'm touched. And I got a fanart! –points to the top of the screen- Tsurai no Shi, you rock! Thanks for all your support guys; chapter 4 will be up in a while. 

**A Note on Sesshoumaru and Harry:** A reviewer asked me about this, so I decided to post this and get it out of the way. Harry is OLDER than Sesshoumaru. When we first see our favorite little killer in the last chapter, he's 15. Harry is 23. Right now, as you read, Harry is 547 years old (Jesus, I can see the white hairs!). Sesshoumaru is currently (in my story, at least) 539 years.  
**A Note on Ryuukotsusei:** Since I know _someone_ will ask about it, I'll put this up now. _Yes_ I know this doesn't fit in with the canon. This is, and forever will be, an AU story, which means that currently the canon InuYasha timeline is twisted to my own personal use.


	4. Interlude Two: The Trainer

**Author's Note:** God you guys are awesome. I love all of your reviews, and I did my best to answer all your questions. Once again, this chapter is dedicated to Tsurai no Shi for making another awesome fanart for MTU. The link is posted up on my profile.

**PLEASE READ:** Some people have expressed their disappointment at the rather large time-skip I went through on the last chapter. I'm telling you all now - **MTU will skip between time periods every other chapter**. That means that every chapter that has **Interlude** in it will be an **Inu no Taisho** chapter, and every chapter that has **Chapter** in it will be an **Inuyasha** chapter. I wanted to make this clear for those of you who were confused by my sudden time-jump.

* * *

**More Than Useless  
****Interlude Two: The Trainer**

"Everything can be taken from man but one thing: the last of human freedoms—to choose one's own attitude in any given set of circumstances, to choose one's own way." (Viktor Frankl)

"Professionals are predictable; it's the amateurs that are dangerous." (Unknown)

"Now don't you stand for that! If somebody tries to kill you, you try and kill 'em right back!" (Firefly)

"Can you switch gears, or are you stuck on stupid?" (Unknown)

"Prejudice is a great timesaver. It enables you to form opinions without bothering to get facts." (Unknown)

"Some cause happiness wherever they go; others, whenever they go." (Oscar Wilde)

* * *

**The Land of the West  
****The 3****rd**** of October**

Haruki looked up from his work when he heard the giant gates that led to Kamin's castle creak open and the guards shouting at each other to let the newcomer through. It wasn't often that they got strangers at the castle, so Haruki was plainly curious. He set down his tools and wiped his hands on the stiff brown work clothes he wore during the day before moving to his door to see what was going on outside.

The guards were allowing a train of people inside. Haruki, when he looked closer, could see that the two stranger's clothes were made out of a very fine material and that they were died in bold, bright colors that would immediate attention to them. With a snort he made his way back to his forge. _'Kamin must be meeting with nobles again'_ he thought, picking up the metal he had been working with before he'd been interrupted.

Kamin didn't often meet with nobles; he disliked them almost as much as Haruki did, in fact. Haruki had been _lucky_ enough to see one of the meetings while delivering a fixed weapon to one of the guards; the simpering sucking-up he had seen had made him want to gag. It was plainly disgusting, and he was glad he had to see so little of it.

An hour later, the door to his forge was rapped on sharply and Kamin strode in, Sesshoumaru at his side, dressed in his usual plain yukata. Haruki gave a smile to the younger boy before turning his attention to Kamin. The white-haired general gave him a friendly look, but there was a mischievous glint in his eyes that Haruki didn't like to see. When Kamin got playful, bad things happened.

"Haruki-kun, I believe I've found you a trainer!" he pronounced grandly. Haruki blinked.

"A……what?" he asked slowly, wondering what on earth Kamin was going on about.

The general laughed, "A trainer, Haruki! Didn't I tell you when you first arrived that I'd get you one?"

Ah, now he remembered……when he had asked to see Sesshoumaru and Kamin fight. But who exactly was this "trainer" Kamin was so suspiciously happy about……?

"Haruki, meet Tomi Yukio!" Kamin said cheerfully, flinging a hand towards the forge door. Haruki turned slowly to meet his trainer, but when he eyes finally landed on the figure he winced.

Tomi Yukio was a short figure with a rounded, almost pudgy body. His dark hair was greasy and lank, and his beady eyes were swallowed up in the rolling fat of his face. He was dressed in bright purple silk, and his mouth was curled into a self-indulgent pout. He looked like a man both self-satisfied and unhappy with his station and life in general.

"_This_ is my trainer?" Haruki asked flatly, unimpressed. He took a sniff of the air and stiffened. "You asked a bloody _toad_ youkai to train me?"

Tomi Yukio puffed up indignantly, making his pudginess even more pronounced. "Now see here! I'm next in line to the throne of the toads, blacksmith, so you'd do better to show some respect!"

Haruki spared him an incredulous look, "Waste my respect on _you_?" he asked critically. "I don't think so toady."

Yukio glared angrily and whirled around to face Kamin, "I won't train this worthless hanyou! I'll never do it in any lifetime, Inu no Taisho!"

Kamin smiled uneasily at the toad then shot a pleading look in Haruki's direction. Haruki stared back for a few long moments before sighing wearily and rubbing his hands on his pants. He turned to Tomi and bowed lowly, "Please forgive me, Tomi-sama. I was being disrespectful and rude. I hope I will have the pleasure of your training." He did his best to make the sarcasm in his voice as subtle as possible.

Tomi eyed Haruki carefully before harrumphing and nodding arrogantly, his previous anger forgotten in the face of the "heartfelt" apology. "It's good to see that you've come to your senses, Haruki-kun. Maybe we'll make something out of you other than a ruffian blacksmith." Haruki tensed but kept his mild smile on his face. He would show this arrogant toad exactly _where_ he could stuff his bloody training, and he'd be sure to do it in the most painful way possible. His lips curled into a smirk before he could clear his face of his emotions.

Kamin watched their exchange with amusement. He really didn't like the toad either; Tomi was an arrogant fool, even with nobles that were well above his station. However he wanted to see how his blacksmith would handle him, and he wanted to see exactly how good Haruki was with his weapons. Tomi was arrogant, yes, but he was also fairly good with a sword.

"Pick your weapon, Haruki-kun, and we shall start," Tomi continued arrogantly. Kamin smiled when he saw Haruki's eyes narrow, but stiffened when a catty, mischievous smile played across the blacksmith's face. He nearly groaned aloud, but managed to hold it back at the last moment. He'd been around Haruki long enough to know that that smile meant _trouble_.

"Of course, Tomi-sama," Haruki said, with another bow. "Just let me get it from the back." Either Tomi didn't recognize the mockery or chose to ignore it. Considering his earlier outburst, Kamin supposed it was the former.

Haruki disappeared into the shadowy corners of the back of the forge, and Kamin grinned as he heard clanging and curses. He'd asked Haruki why he didn't simply put a torch in the back of the room, as it was the darkest place in the forge, but the hanyou had shrugged and said it was too much of a hassle to bother.

After many muffled curses and an abundance of clanging and clatter Haruki emerged from the shadows looking a little worse for wear but with no permanent damage. Kamin raised an eyebrow at the sword in his hand; he recognized the weapon from when he had first met the hanyou all those months ago. He grinned again, but this time more sharply. This would be interesting.

"What is that chichiue?" Kamin looked down at Sesshoumaru, who was eyeing the sword with an academic curiosity.

"Haruki's sword, Sesshoumaru," Kamin told him. "It's a very fine weapon – Haruki-kun made it himself in fact." Sesshoumaru looked even more interested, but then his son had been fascinated by the mysterious blacksmith ever since he first arrived. Kamin supposed that he should be worried about it, but he was happy to see Sesshoumaru take an interest in something, even if it was in Haruki. Sesshoumaru had been a walking corpse ever since his mother's death – he'd wandered listlessly around the castle, never doing anything relevant unless Kamin asked him to. But with the arrival of the blacksmith, Sesshoumaru was more alert and eager, and it was a welcome change.

Haruki glanced at them and Kamin was amused to see cold annoyance in his bright green eyes. Apparently Tomi's arrogance and Kamin's insistence on the toad being his trainer had angered the kitten more than he had shown so far.

"Tomi-san, Haruki-kun, shall we go outside?" Kamin asked politely, while his inward self rubbed its hands together gleefully. Haruki's flat look told him that his inner glee wasn't as hidden as he thought it was and that he was going to _pay_ for this. However instead of being afraid, Kamin just smiled and beckoned the pair outside.

The day was sunny and clear with a hint of cool October air making the day feel crisp instead of lazy. The trees surrounding Haruki's forge had already turned orange and red, and some of the leaves were falling, spreading across the ground in a blanket of autumn colors. Haruki took a deep breath and felt calm instantly; he'd always love the fall. He closed his eyes briefly and when he opened them they were cool and confident.

He turned to Tomi and asked, "Where shall we train then, Tomi-san?"

Tomi sneered, "Over there, blacksmith," and he pointed to the empty clearing to the right of Haruki's forge, where the ground was clearest of leaves and debris. Haruki's mouth twisted up into something between a smile and a smirk before he tipped his head in Tomi's direction and stalked over to the chosen place. Kamin watched his anger with anticipation, Sesshoumaru with some confusion and curiosity, and Tomi very likely didn't notice at all, too wrapped up in his own arrogant musings. The toad was confident that the little blacksmith would soon be bending down to his whims, as a _creature_ of his status should. Tomi mentally sneered in Kamin's direction; how a high-level daiyoukai such as Inu no Taisho could stand to let that whelp stand up to him, he had no idea. However, even if the blacksmith's lord was soft, Tomi would make sure that the hanyou wouldn't expect any such nonsense from _him_. He would _break_ the blacksmith, and then maybe Inu no Taisho would allow him to _play_ for a while. After all, the blacksmith was very pretty for a hanyou.

Kamin frowned when he turned away from Haruki's gleefully entertaining, anger-filled display to see Tomi watching his blacksmith with a glint of cruelty in his toady eyes. His frown deepened when he realized that depravity wasn't the only thing he could see in Tomi's eyes; there was a savage lust lurking there, the kind that a sadistic man drudges up for a whore that he likes to break and crush. Kamin shivered lightly, and made a mental note to _never_ leave Haruki alone with Tomi. Whatever else may be said of Isei Kamin, he wasn't about to allow those that worked with to be toyed with like a common slut, especially not when the person in question was such a valuable and amusing blacksmith like Haruki.

Tomi had finally dredged himself away from this internal musings on what the best way to break the hanyou and stepped on to the chosen training field. He was on the opposite end of Haruki, both of them facing each other. For a moment their little corner was entirely silent, and Haruki had a sudden flashback to one of the old Western movies he'd seen his relatives watching back in his world. The image of fat, shrimpy Tomi in chaps and spurs managed to make him smile a bit, though his shoulders remained tense and his eyes stayed wary.

"First we'll fight, one on one," Tomi said as pleasantly as possible, drawing out his own short sword that shone silver and looked impossibly fancy. "The winner gets to take a……_favor_ from the loser," Haruki didn't like the tone in Tomi's voice, but decided to ignore it for now.

"What's the purpose of the prize, Tomi-san?" he asked coldly. _I won't fall for your tricks.'_

Tomi's eyes narrowed, "To add a little……incentive, you could say. This way I can learn where you stand in sword-play and consider where to go from there," he added in conceitedly, trying to add a professional touch. It wouldn't hurt to look good in front of Inu no Taisho.

Haruki considered it for a moment then shrugged, "All right." _'I'll just have to make sure I don't lose.'_ Haruki took a deep breath and steadied himself. Having a hot-head would make him slip up and likely make him lose, and if there was one thing he _didn't_ want to do today it was to lose. He wasn't completely oblivious to the way Tomi was looking at him.

"On the count of three, you will begin," Kamin said and Haruki shot a glance at him when he heard the odd tone in his employer's voice. He was satisfied to see that Kamin was eyeing Tomi distrustfully; at least he wasn't the only one to see the way the toad was acting.

_'Breathe'_ he told himself and drew in another deep breath, feeling his over-tight muscles relax and then tension drain from his body. His eyes never left Tomi; he didn't trust the toad to not try anything before Kamin said the word.

"One……" Kamin said. Haruki took another breath. "Two……" His hand tightened on the hilt on Kokushibyou. "Three!"

The pair didn't move immediately after Kamin's shout, instead opting to study each other. Tomi wondered vaguely why such an amateur swordsman such as the blacksmith didn't rush in immediately, but shrugged the thought off as he charged himself, the silver of his blade glinting in the pale October sunlight as he rushed the blade at Haruki.

He was surprised when his sword was blocked by the strange black blade that the hanyou wielded. Drawing back he immediately charged in again, slashing and cutting at his opponent, trying to tire him out. However despite Tomi's obvious advantage in swordplay, the hanyou still managed to dodge away from his blade with ease, avoiding more than he blocked, and defending more than he was attacking. Incensed by the lack of an immediate win, Tomi's slashes became harsher and, by consequence, clumsier.

Kamin watched with approval as his blacksmith dodged and avoided Tomi's blade as neatly as any pureblooded neko. Neko youkai were the most agile of all fighters; they preferred to dodge rather than to block because of it. It seemed that kurohyou weren't any different in this area. _'However……'_ he thought, his eyes narrowing suspiciously.

"What's wrong chichiue?" Sesshoumaru's voice startled him out of his analysis. Kamin blinked and looked down at his son, who hadn't looked up at while he voiced the question, too enraptured with the battle to look away.

"Sesshoumaru," Kamin said, and his son spared him a brief glance. "Notice Haruki's sword. He is supposedly a novice still; he told me that he hadn't had the time or resources to train. And yet……his blade has not gotten in the way of his dodging, as it should have if he was truly a beginner. If he had never handled a sword in battle, then it would be flailing around, and he wouldn't know what to do with it."

"He is a blacksmith, Chichi," Sesshoumaru reminded him impassively. "He handles swords as a living."

Kamin chuckled, "Son, even a blacksmith can't pick up how to fight with a sword from merely making the weapon. That takes time, effort, and training." Kamin's eyes had narrowed suspiciously at the last word. _'Did Haruki get training without me knowing?'_ he thought curiously. It would fit the independent blacksmith; Haruki wasn't really the type to ask for permission.

He winced when he saw that first blood had been drawn by Tomi; a thin cut on Haruki's cheek had begun to ooze the red liquid. Haruki didn't reach up to wipe the blood that was dripping down his face and into his mouth; instead his eyes narrowed and his dodges and attacks strengthened. Kamin was curious again; he didn't know that much about Haruki, but it seemed that the hanyou had some experience with fighting. Maybe he'd been forced to learn it? After all, hanyous weren't very well received by youkai……

More blood was drawn, but this time it was Tomi sporting the wound instead of Haruki. The kurohyou had managed to slice his sword arm, and blood was welling around the cut, staining Tomi's expensive looking outfit. The toad looked suitably outraged, and his attacks became even wilder. He managed to get Haruki in the chest and on the arm, and that restored his good humor and his arrogance.

Haruki dodged one more strike - _'the final one'_ – and then darted in at an incredible speed, making two shallow cuts in Tomi's chest. The toad fell back, one hand at the now bleeding wounds. His sword lowered and Haruki pounced, bringing them both to the ground. Their swords clanked together but otherwise did no damage as the kurohyou pinned Tomi to the ground, making sure that he couldn't move. He squeezed the wrist clasped in his hand painfully hard, making Tomi drop his weapon so it fell against the grass.

Kamin smiled as he announced, "Yami Haruki is the winner!"

Tomi scowled fiercely before spitting in Haruki's face, which made the hanyou give him a disgusted look. As quickly as he could he climbed off of the toad; he didn't like being close to Tomi at all. He walked to Kamin's side as Tomi slowly got up, one hand still clutching at his now stained shirt. The cuts still bled, but they had slowed and Haruki was certain that soon they would stop altogether.

"I demand a re-match!" he snarled, limping his way over to the threesome. "The hanyou obviously cheated!"

Kamin sighed, "Haruki-kun beat you fairly, Tomi-san. Now I suggest you gather your pride and collect your weapon. I'll be with your father in the Main Hall when you've finished cleaning yourself up." Kamin looked down at Sesshoumaru, who shook his head minutely, before sighing and turning to make the walk back up to the castle. Tomi sneered at his back, but did nothing else in front of the Lord of the West's brat heir.

He had just turned to pick up his sword when Haruki's voice cut through the air, "There's still the matter of the favor, Tomi-san."

Tomi stiffened but he turned back to face Haruki with a scowl on his face. "And what is the favor you'll ask of me, hanyou?" he asked, a heavy sneer in his voice. Haruki's mild smile was cold and icy.

"You will not return to this castle. I don't care what excuses you have to make up; you won't come within feet of this castle, Kamin, Sesshoumaru, me, or _anyone_ that lives here."

Tomi glared and his hand itched to hit the impertinent hanyou, to make him realize _who exactly was superior_, but the golden eyes of Inu no Taisho's whelp stayed his hand. The boy could report back to his father, and then _Tomi's_ father would hear of it, and he would likely be banished for enraging the powerful Inu lord who for some reason _liked_ the blacksmith. Snarling silently he nodded jerkily and quickly collected his weapon before waddling out of sight, intent on finding the castle healers.

Haruki sighed as he watched the blob leave his sight and rubbed the bridge of his nose. After a few moments of calming his temper (which had wanted to shoot off ever since he met the annoying toad) he looked down at the shorter youkai by his side. Sesshoumaru's eyes had stayed fixed on the place Tomi had disappeared and they were narrow and cold. Haruki smiled; the kid had grown on him since they had first met. He was always stopping by the forge, watching as Haruki worked, or following him as he went to deliver fixed or new weapons to the soldiers or Kamin.

He laid a hand on Sesshoumaru's shoulder, making the boy look up at him instead. "Come on, cub," he said, steering them both towards his forge. "Let's stay out of your Otou-san's hair while I get fixed up, hm?"

* * *

When Kamin arrived two hours later, the amusing sight of an overly-bandaged Haruki and an uncharacteristically sheepish looking Sesshoumaru greeted him. Bright green eyes glared up at him as he laughed and Haruki huffed.

"He went a little over-board," the hanyou told him with a sniff, though he directed a smile Sesshoumaru's way. The younger youkai had regressed back to his normal, stoic self when his father walked into the room, and only the slight color in his face suggested that he was embarrassed at all.

"Don't worry, Haruki-kun; I think it's cute," Kamin said with a grin, eyeing the thick bandages covering Haruki's face, arms, and chest.

"Shut up, you bastard," the hanyou grumbled as he peeled away the excess bandage. He left only one strip to cover the thin wounds he had received during the fight; they had already stopped bleeding but Haruki didn't want to infect them before they closed completely. Once he was done he looked up at Kamin with a glare.

"What the hell was that?!" he cried out what he had been wanting to say ever since Kamin had introduced the toad, standing up so he could poke at the taller demon's shoulder. "That guy wasn't even fit to fight me, let alone train me! What the hell were you thinking you good for nothing mutt?!"

Kamin rubbed the back of his head feeling a little sheepish, "Aa……Well, I wanted to test you……"

"You could've used one of your lower ranked soldiers for that Kamin," Haruki interrupted with his usual amount of bluntness.

"Well, you see his father wanted to show off his son……" Kamin explained, "So I decided it would be as good a time as any to see how good you were!" he beamed at Haruki.

The hanyou just stared at him before slapping a hand on his forehead and muttering, "Baka," under his breath. Kamin pouted but said nothing about the unneeded insult.

"Where did you learn to fight Haruki-kun?" he asked, trying to make the question as innocent and casual as possible. Judging from the cautious look the hanyou was giving him; Kamin felt that he hadn't succeeded. He frowned and mentally made a note to work on his acting skills.

"When I was younger, I learned some hand-to-hand fighting," Haruki said, acting casual far better than Kamin had. The Inu was almost jealous. "And I started to learn sword-fighting from a couple of your soldiers a few months back."

Kamin started and then demanded, "Who?!"

Haruki smiled slightly, "Yaro Tanaki and Retaki Ichigo. They're both low-level officers, so there's no need to worry about insubordination Kamin. They couldn't afford to have their swords fixed; I gave the option of training for their payment."

Kamin frowned, "Why couldn't they pay?"

"Yaro-san apparently got married recently; all of his money went to that. Retaki-san has his elderly parents and six siblings to think of."

Kamin hummed and made another mental note to talk to the two officers about their money situation. He didn't like the thought of anyone under his direction being empty-handed. He then turned his attention to Haruki, who was eyeing him curiously. When he raised an eyebrow in silent question, the hanyou sighed and ran a hand through his hair.

"I wanted to ask if you'd train me," he said quietly, "since you can't seem to find a decent trainer."

Kamin considered it. From what he'd seen Haruki was a decent swordsman with the capacity to be more. He had a lot of untapped talent, and Kamin had a feeling that he'd like the end results. However it would also mean more work for him, and the troublesome problem of pushing Sesshoumaru even more towards Haruki……

"Fine," he said with a sigh. "I'll train you."

* * *

**Author's Note:** Please don't kill me! I know it's been over a month, and that this chapter is obscenely short, but school is killing me and real life has decided it doesn't want me to write my stories. Hopefully the next chapter will be out sooner, but I make no promises – it could take just as long. This is mostly a filler chapter, but Tomi is semi-important. Thanks for the reviews guys – over 80 reviews for just 3 chapters is pretty good in my books.

**Note to anyone living in a warm state:** Thank God that you live there and pray that you never move to Minnesota. 15 below tonight with wind chill, and the regular temperature last time I checked was around 2 degrees. It SUCKS big time. To those of you who live in a cold state; I feel your pain.


	5. Chapter Two: The Arrival

**Author's Note:** Ahaha……Don't kill me? Please? Seriously – I meant to get this out sooner but real life is being a bitch right now and all the free pretty online manga distracted me……So yeah. Hem. But I will do better with updates –Good Guy Smile- I promise!

* * *

**More Than Useless  
****Chapter Two: The Arrival**

"People in their right minds never take pride in their talents." (To Kill a Mockingbird)

"No matter how long ago it was, losing the most important people in your life is still hard to forget. You will still feel lonely." (xxxHolic)

"I'm not a master. I'm a student-master, meaning that I have the knowledge of a master and the expertise of a master, but I'm still learning. So I'm a student-master. I don't believe in the word 'master.' I consider the master as such when they close the casket." (Anon)

"One owes respect to the living. To the dead one owes only the truth." (Anon)

"People are never machines, even when they want to be. You have to start somewhere." (The Charioteer by Mary Renault)

* * *

**Feudal Era: Unknown Location  
****October 1****st**

Pale fingers caressed the top of a snowy white head while Naraku's cruel red eyes peered into her small circular mirror. Thin, sharp lips curved upwards into a smirk as he viewed the contents within; a beautiful hanyou with power to match even _him_ conversing with a large cat at his side. Waving a hand for the child Kanna to clear her mirror, Naraku sat back in his twisted throne in thought.

So……Yami Haruki had joined the battle at last. He'd been waiting for this; the hanyou was the only one that could challenge him, unless the Inu brothers decided to band together, which Naraku knew to be impossible. _'But……'_ a voice whispered in the back of his mind _'he was close to Sesshoumaru, wasn't he? If anyone could convince Sesshoumaru to band with his brother it would be Yami.'_ Naraku shook the thoughts from his mind; it wouldn't happen. The Inu brother's hatred overcame their need for survival.

He sighed, closing his eyes. The chess board was so much more complicated now, with such a powerful player as Yami on the board. The kurohyou hanyou had strong connections and a strong youki; powerful enough to even challenge one of the great Lords of the Lands. Naraku had heard that when Inu no Taisho still lived he had considered Yami to be his right hand man, equal in power and rights.

_'Well……'_ he thought to himself, his hands clenching so hard that blood ran down from under his fingernails. His eyes opened to reveal insane crimson irises, full of blood-lust. _'You may be good, Yami Haruki, but I am better! We shall see who shall come out on top in this game!' _

* * *

**Feudal Era: The Western Lands  
****October 1****st**

Haruki caressed the ears of Asa absently as he stared down at the sleeping group on the ground. They had made good headway in the last week, marching steadily north-east; however they hadn't seen anything of Naraku yet. Haruki's eyes narrowed and his hand paused over Asa's fur; he could _feel_ Naraku's presence here - the pure in the land was reacting to large source of negative and cruel energy Naraku carried with him; the poisoned jewel. The pitifully few amounts of purified shards that the miko carried with her weren't enough to calm the land.

Haruki sighed and continued with his petting as Asa butted her head impatiently against his hand. Had he not been in the Western lands he would have never been able to feel Naraku's presence. He was as close to the land as Kamin had been; he was one of the few outside the royal Inu clan to know that the Western lands was more than a plot of dirt, that they were alive and teeming with emotion and spirit. It was something that normal youkai couldn't feel unless they had a special connection the lands, as Kamin and Haruki did. In fact, Haruki was surprised that Inuyasha wasn't able to feel his homeland's distress. He had a feeling it had something to do with the suppression necklace carried on his neck, but he would have to test his theories at another time; right now he had to worry more about getting them decently trained. Once they could fight Naraku on an even foot he'd delve deeper into their power, and refine them. His only goal at the moment was for the pack to survive to the next day.

He sighed again but smiled when Asa looked up at him in concern. He'd met her soon after……that day, when she had been younger; barely out of kitling status and alone in the world. Haruki had saved her from starving to death and she, in turn, had pledged to help and follow him. He'd been unnerved by it at first; he didn't like the thought of anyone following him, let alone such a young cub. But the youkai had insisted and had remained faithful and loyal to him.

Kaemon on the other hand he'd met later on in his travels. He'd been staying in a village, trying to earn some money so he could get food for himself and Asa when he'd come across the bird on the street. Later he found that the bird had been run over by a truck – he hadn't been able to fly to begin with due to a broken wing. Haruki, with his soft spot for injured animals, had immediately taken the hawk in and tended to him.

Haruki was shaken by his thoughts when he felt Inuyasha's presence coming towards him. Looking down he watched as the silver-haired hanyou jumped from limb to limb and finally settled next to him, his arms folded calmly across his chest. Haruki turned to Inuyasha and raised an eyebrow, silently waiting for the younger hanyou to talk.

"You said you knew my father right?" Inuyasha started, his eyes looking anywhere but Haruki. The kurohyou smiled.

"Yes, I knew him very well. He was my best friend, in those days." Haruki smiled softly. "I also knew your brother, when he was young. However I left the castle soon after you were born, so I never got to meet you as a baby."

Inuyasha's head tilted to the side in curiosity, "You knew that bastard? He used to be a _kid_!"

Haruki laughed, "Yes, Sesshoumaru used to be a kid. It wasn't until……" he stopped and grew silent before sighing. "Your father's death affected him more than anyone else, perhaps except me and Izayoi. We both loved him, yes, but Sesshoumaru worshipped him."

Inuyasha snorted. "It's hard to believe that bastard has any feelings," he said frankly.

Haruki's eyes narrowed, "What exactly has been going on between the two of you? Sesshoumaru has his faults, but when I knew him he wasn't the type to abandon family."

Inuyasha glared violently into the distance and Haruki was sure that he was imagining his half-brother. "He's always trying to kill me!" he spat out. "He says that I'm defiling the family name, and that he should be the one to have Tessaiga and not me! He's always trying to steal it because he thinks that he got the weak sword and that a hanyou like me shouldn't have a piece of my father's fang," Inuyasha's hand subconsciously rested on the hilt of said sword, drawing it close to his body protectively. Haruki blinked, surprised.

That……didn't sound like the Sesshoumaru he'd once known. But then, Sesshoumaru had changed when Kamin died. He'd heard the stories about the new Western Lord, and while the common people trusted him to be their leader, they didn't trust him to look out for their interests. Plus the fact that Sesshoumaru was willing to abandon his younger brother, especially when it would've been his responsibility to raise the pup after Izayoi died……it was surprising.

Youkai were very protective of children, since their bonds with kids were more animalistic than human. Even sibling bonds were much closer than humans were – blood was the most powerful substance in the youkai world. When you were connected by blood, you were tied to someone; you had a bond with them. For Sesshoumaru to ignore that and even try to kill the person he was bonded with……

"Next time he arrives," Haruki said, turning Inuyasha's attention back to himself. "I'm going to _have a talk with him_."

Far away a certain Inu youkai felt a shiver run down his spine. **(1) **

* * *

The day was clear, bright, and sunny and yet Inuyasha couldn't suppress his feelings of anxiety. Perhaps it was the fact that it was to be their first day of intensive training by Haruki, and that the look on the kurohyou's face was somewhat terrifying. Vaguely it resembled the look Kagome got when she had a particularly mischievous thought, except that it was magnified by 10 times and was 20 times scarier.

"Today I'll give each of you a specific task," Haruki never spoke loudly, but always clearly. "You'll have till sunrise tomorrow to complete it and then you'll get to sleep for a couple of hours before we move on."

Kagome looked like she wanted to protest, but a look from Haruki silenced her. Thanks to the hanyou's instance they had bought new clothes for the girl at the first village they stopped at. Currently Kagome was wearing a long flowered skirt similar to Sango's when she wasn't in battle gear and a long-sleeved white shirt. She had protested, but her annoyance with the situation had died down when she saw it did attract less attention than when she wore her regular clothes.

"Sango," Haruki turned the woman's attention to him. "For today work on improving your aim and start thinking of a weapon you'd like to have for close combat. Tomorrow I'll work more closely with you, but today I think I'll have to start elsewhere. Get Kirara to train with you as well," Sango nodded and whistled to her companion before heading off. Haruki smiled and turned to Miroku.

"You," he said to the monk, "are going to be reading this." He pulled a scroll from his sleeve and Inuyasha frowned from behind him.

"Where'd you get that?" as far as the Inu hanyou knew, Haruki hadn't left their group since he'd arrived.

"I asked Asa to go and get some things for today," Haruki said, waving a hand at the snoozing cat sleeping on a tree branch above their heads. "I lived in a hut back where I first met you – Asa is fast and she made good time."

Inuyasha's frown deepened before he shrugged it off. So far Haruki was fairly truthful – he didn't have a reason not to trust the other hanyou.

"What's it about, Yami-kun?" Miroku asked his eyes full of curiosity. Haruki smiled again.

"It talks about seals and the many sealing techniques used by the neko youkai." Miroku's eyes widened.

Neko youkai were praised for their fighting ability, but they were known for their sealing abilities. Their secrets were heavily guarded however, and Miroku wasn't sure he wanted to known how the newest member of their group managed to get his hands on a scroll on the precious seals. Carefully he took the scroll from Haruki's hand.

"Read that and, if you want, practice some of it. I expect you to know it well by the next time we meet," Haruki instructed. Miroku nodded and made his way to a tree so he could sit and start to read. Haruki watched him go before turning to Kagome and Shippou, who was on her shoulder.

"Shippou," he said quietly, "there's not much you can do right now since you don't have a weapon. But think about what kind of weapon you'd like and work on some of your illusions. Once we stop somewhere and get your weapon we'll more in-depth, alright?" Shippou nodded, just happy to be included like the adults.

"Kagome, you're working on aim," the girl opened her mouth to protest but Haruki's warning look stopped her. "Yes, _aim_. Quite frankly, you miss more than you hit. I want you to hit," he looked around and smirked when he saw an apple on one of the higher branches of a nearby tree, "that apple 10 times, and I want proof at the end. If you manage to do that by the time we're done, then find another target, something _small_ and possibly _far-away_ and aim for that. I want proof for any item you find. Understood?" Kagome nodded, clearly not happy but willing to do what Haruki said for the moment.

Finally Haruki turned to Inuyasha, who was standing next to Kouga. "Inuyasha, we'll be working on your fighting technique," he instructed. "Later on I probably won't have that much of a chance to work with you extensively, so we're doing this to start off. Kouga you're welcome to watch or do whatever the hell you want – just don't get in the way." The ookami youkai smirked but stayed next to Inuyasha, who was watching Haruki with a mixture of respect, excitement, and fear. Haruki snorted and started to walk into the forest, making sure to stay away from the areas the others had chosen for their training.

He stopped when he was sure that they wouldn't be disturbed by the others training and turned to face Inuyasha. Kouga had settled himself in a nearby tree, his blue eyes focused on their little training area.

"When I first arrived, I told you that I had been watching your group for some time," Haruki started to talk. "You're a very good fighter, Inuyasha-kun – you improvise, you don't give up in the face of defeat, your stamina and strength are excellent……but some of the battles you've won have been pure luck. A warrior needs that as well, but you can't rely on luck because eventually it will run out."

"Firstly – your reflexes. They're excellent, especially for your lack of upbringing, but also inconsistent. What's the sense you rely on most to tell you if an enemy is nearby?"

"Smell," Inuyasha answered.

Haruki nodded, "Like most Inu demons. But what makes the difference between you and someone like Sesshoumaru – don't give me that look, he's a practically undefeated warrior – is that _he_ doesn't just use his earthly senses to detect not only enemies, but anything around him."

Inuyasha was confused and didn't hesitate to say so, "What do you mean 'earthly senses'?" he asked demandingly.

Haruki smiled. "Smelling, Hearing, Seeing, Tasting, and Touching, of course Inuyasha-kun. The senses that tell you if something is real or not, the senses that keep you solidly hooked to this world. In other words 'the earthly senses'. The 'sixth sense' that ningen speak of is an 'otherworldly sense' – it does the exact opposite of the five senses. Youki is also in this category, as is chi and chakra. As it is, we are discussing the otherworldly senses today, Inuyasha."

Haruki stooped down and picked up a small stone from the grass, tossing it to Inuyasha. The Inu hanyou caught it with a puzzle expression, wondering how this would help him with the "otherworldly senses" his trainer was babbling on about.

"Throw that at me," Haruki said, closing his eyes. Inuyasha raised an eyebrow (a hard-earned skill) but shrugged and threw the stone at Haruki. He was surprised when the kurohyou instantly twisted away, letting the stone slide by him easily. Inuyasha frowned.

"How do I know that you just didn't hear it?" he was surprised when Haruki smiled, his eyes still closed.

"You'll just have to trust me," he said cheerfully. "Now, to start your lesson. Close your eyes Inuyasha-kun." Inuyasha eyed the kurohyou warily but closed his eyes. "Open your senses," Haruki's voice floated over his ears. "Calm yourself, find your peaceful place. Most people do this by concentrating on their body – or one specific place of their body like their breathing or their heartbeat. Do it however you want."

Inuyasha grumbled under his breath but focused in on his breathing. He frowned as he did so – his breath felt too light, too airy – not a strong enough hold for him to concentrate on. Quickly he shifted his focus to his heartbeat and smiled. Inuyasha needed something strong and steady to hold his attention **(2)**.

Slowly his heartbeat slowed down and his tense muscles started to loosen as Inuyasha relaxed. He was only aware of the steady thumping of his heart, so when Haruki started to talk again he was startled.

"That's good. Now, open your senses – feel the world around you without opening your eyes."

Inuyasha frowned, but he tried – he moved his attention from his heart to each of his senses, starting with smell and ending with touch. His frown deepened as he felt nothing out of the ordinary and he was just about to give up when he felt the smallest flickering of _something_ nearby. The strange feeling was coming straight at him, and was getting larger and larger as it came closer. When it was right in front of him, Inuyasha raised a hand to block out of instinct and was surprised when he felt an arm against his own. Instantly his eyes flew open and he saw Haruki standing in front of him, a smirk playing across his face.

"Good," the hanyou complimented, "for your first try, anyways. Nobody else has been able to block me so fast. Now – try it again and see if you can get that "sixth sense" faster."

The next hour passed in this way – Inuyasha would try to "sense" and Haruki would randomly attack him to see how good the Inu hanyou was doing at it. By the time Haruki called a halt, Inuyasha could start "sensing" fairly quickly and was able to block most of Haruki's attacks.

"We'll stop for now," Haruki said quietly. "There are a couple other things I want to go over with you and then we'll spar for a while. Firstly – your form. You haven't had Kamin's sword for that long, right? The stories of it only started a little while ago." Inuyasha nodded. "Hm. What kind of style did you use before that?"

"Style?" Inuyasha questioned, looking confused. Haruki raised an eyebrow.

"Did you ever try to train yourself in martial arts? A fighting style that didn't rely on weapons?" he questioned, looking a bit troubled.

Inuyasha shook his head, "No. I never needed to. If I ever fought, usually my claws would be enough to get them away."

Haruki sighed, "Sesshoumaru neglected your upbringing in more ways then one. I guess it's my duty then. Come, let's sit, Inuyasha. This may take some time."

The two of them knelt beneath a tree and Haruki called out, "Kouga-san, if you want to join, you may!" Kouga jumped down from his tree and sauntered over to them, before sitting in a casual position next to Inuyasha, who scowled at his rival.

"Listen, Inuyasha," the Inu hanyou turned his focus to Haruki. "There's a reason that your father's entire clan was the most powerful in the West Lands – they were trained at an early age, and they were trained hard. I know Sesshoumaru knows at least three different styles of martial arts, even if he uses them rarely. He's also very proficient with various weapons. When I first arrived at Kamin's castle, he'd already been training for eight years – he started when he was six." Inuyasha's eyes were wide; he didn't remember much about his childhood, but he knew that at six all he'd been doing was trying to get some of the priests where he and his mother lived to play with him.

"There's a standard style for Inu youkai to learn – Hayai Tsume," Haruki smiled and added. "It's not the most original name, but then I've found that Inu youkai of the past weren't very creative. I can teach it to you – it was the first style Kamin taught to me when he was still alive – and if you learn it thoroughly enough we'll look through other styles and see what fits you."

"What's the point?" Inuyasha asked bluntly. He needed to survive, and he wouldn't go against this training if it helped him live, but he needed to know exactly _how_ it would help him.

Haruki smiled again, "Naraku's first aim will be to separate you from your sword, Inuyasha," he told him quietly. "You may not be able to get it back quickly enough, so you'll need to learn to defend yourself without it. If your progress in Hayai Tsume is good, then we'll see if we can either find or make a style for your sword. Now!" Haruki leapt to his feet and suddenly one of his swords – a black one, Inuyasha noticed – was in his hands. "Let's spar for a bit and then we'll start on your martial arts, okay? Kouga, you may want to move out of the way," he added in to the still seated ookami. With a nod, Kouga had vanished back to his original tree and left Inuyasha and Haruki standing where they were, facing off.

"Time to get started," Haruki said, his usual smile on his face, but Inuyasha couldn't suppress a shiver down his spine. Why did he have the feeling this would end badly for him……?

* * *

**A Week Later**

Haruki was the first to notice when she entered their camp, though Inuyasha and Kouga saw her soon after. Their reactions were immediately different; Haruki gave her a gentle smile that said nothing of what he was thinking, Kouga gave her a curious stare, and Inuyasha tensed up like a rock, his eyes never leaving her graceful figure. Soon the humans became aware of her presence as well, and all of them scowled when they saw exactly who had invaded their camp.

Kikyou was an elegant woman, even in death, Haruki mused. He'd met her once or twice before – he'd never been a demon to try and steal what she was protecting, but he had been curious and wanted to take a look at it. He'd been impressed with her skill – she'd nearly managed to hit him with one her arrows the first time he'd come around to take a look at the Jewel. It took a considerable amount of pleading and talking on his part to get her to allow him to see it.

"Kikyou," he said warmly, startling his companions. "It's nice to see you again, even if you should be dead and lying peacefully in your grave."

Kikyou's apathetic brown gaze stared up at him before she nodded once. Then she turned to Inuyasha and said, "We need to talk."

"Inuyasha!" Kagome cried angrily as the Inu hanyou immediately stood up and made his way over to the dead miko. Only a look from Haruki stopped her from saying more, although she did purse her lips angrily. The pair made their way into the surrounding trees, leaving the circle of companions to the fire and darkness.

"Why did you let him go?" Kagome snapped out, turning her fury on Haruki. The kurohyou took it calmly.

"Because Kikyou needed to speak with him, and I doubt she would if it wasn't urgent," he said quietly. "When I met her she seemed to be the serious type – I doubt she would need to talk to Inuyasha for frivolous reasons."

"But-" Kagome protested, only to be cut off by Miroku.

"What Kagome isn't saying, Haruki-san," the priest said carefully, "is that Inuyasha and Kikyou used to be lovers."

Haruki raised an eyebrow, "What does that have to do with anything?"

Miroku looked surprised, "You don't think that they'd want to spend……_time_ together, after being parted so long?" he asked.

Haruki scoffed, "In case the lot of you haven't noticed, Kikyou is a _dead woman_. Unless you think that Inuyasha's into necrophilia……" he trailed off, noticing the human's bright red blushes. "Yeah, that's what I thought. Look, would the lot of you say that Inuyasha was in love with Kikyou?" The humans looked at each and then nodded in unison. "Well, that says it right there, doesn't it? If any of the people I loved came back to life the way she did, I'd want to spend as much time with them as I could. It doesn't mean that they're going to get married and have babies – I don't think that's even _possible_ – but what it does mean is that you guys should back off and let Inuyasha spend time with her." **(3)**

Haruki gave them all stern looks before getting up and walking to where Kouga was sitting under a tree, staring off into the forest. He took a seat next to the ookami, smirking when he didn't even realize Haruki was there.

"I wouldn't worry if I was you," he said, his smirk growing as Kouga jumped and swung around to meet his eyes. "She's not alive – just a walking corpse. Even if Inuyasha was still in love with her, there's nothing he can do about it. You've still got hope." His smirk turned into a smile when Kouga blushed slightly and turned back to look out into the forest without a word.

Haruki turned his attention away from the ookami and up to the sky, where the waning crescent of a moon was rising. He frowned slightly – he'd watched the group long enough to know the days when Inuyasha turned human, and besides that he also knew how the moon was the day the cub was born. It was a little known fact that hanyou's turned human on the nights when the moon was in the stage it had been on their birth. With Inuyasha, it had been the first night of the new moon. Haruki sighed – soon the cub would be human, and that would be a vulnerable position if Naraku got wind of where they were. He'd have to guard them all night to make sure no one – youkai or otherwise – managed to get at the pack.

He was startled from his thoughts when he heard a rustling in the trees and he frowned. It was too soon for Kikyou and Inuyasha to be back, and besides that it wasn't even their scent. In fact……Haruki's eyes widened and he stood up, bringing Kouga and the human's attention to him. He didn't acknowledge them, however, and kept his eyes firmly on the stretch of trees where the noise and scent was coming from. He didn't even notice when Kouga stood at her shoulder, or the humans got their weapons out, too focused to even care at the moment.

Soon the sounds were loud enough even for the humans to hear, and they began to whisper among themselves. Haruki's eyes widened as the person who was causing all the ruckus stepped into the moonlight – yes he'd figured it would be _him_ but to see him like this, after all these years……Golden eyes came up to meet his and widened slightly in a way that Haruki took to be surprise. He smiled, pleased that he could still surprise _him_ even now and offered a low bow.

"It's good to see you again," he said softly, ignoring the human's gasps. His eyes locked with gold ones. "Sesshoumaru."

* * *

**Author's Notes:** Bwhaha……I bet you all hate me now. And you have to wait through another Interlude before you get to see Sesshoumaru get pwned by Haruki. Kukuku……I can't wait……-evil eyes- I don't really like this chapter (it was hell to write, let me tell ya that) but oh well……I'm sorry that it's so short! Anyhow – thanks for the reviews guys – you all rock!

**(1)** Kukuku……  
**(2)** ……I feel kinda poetic right now. –cough-Kouga-cough-  
**(3)** Kagome's jealousy of Kikyou (a freaking _dead woman_) is one of the things that annoys me about her, so this rant kinda just……came out –sweatdrop-

**Hayai Tsume:** Roughly means 'Swift Claw' because Unwritten sucks with names and couldn't come up with anything better. It's a strictly Inu clan martial art, and it relies on the use of their claws and swift action – just like the names says. Heh.  
**Necrophilia:** Having sex with dead people. I thought I'd add this in because I had no idea what it was the first time I read about it……


	6. Interlude Three: The Grief

**Author's Notes:** Thanks for all the reviews!

* * *

**More Than Useless  
****Interlude Three: The Grief**

Pain hardens, and great pain hardens greatly, whatever the comforters say, and suffering does not ennoble, though it may occasionally lend a certain rigid dignity of manner to the suffering frame. (Antonia S. Byatt)

Sometimes you put walls up not to keep people out, but to see who cares enough to break them down. (Unknown)

No matter how long ago it was, losing the most important people in your life is still hard to forget. You will still feel lonely. (xxxHolic by CLAMP)

Maybe that's what you got when you stood over your grief, facing it finally. A sense of its depths, its area, the distance across, and the way over or around it, whichever you choose in the end. (The Truth about Forever by Sarah Dessen)

I am more afraid of an army of 100 sheep led by a lion than an army of 100 lions led by a sheep. (Talleyrand)

* * *

_-Dream Sequence-_

_Harry Potter stared at the ruins of what used to be the greatest and most prestigious school in the Wizarding world with dull eyes. Hogwarts had been destroyed only days before and he knew that going to the ruins was not only extremely dangerous but also reckless. Voldemort and his followers could still be in the area after all, and the war would be lost if Harry was captured or killed._

_But Hogwarts was his home. Snape could sneer at Gryffindor sentimentality all he wanted, but Harry needed to pay his respects to the ruins of the once great castle that protected himself and his friends._

_-Flash-_

_"Potter!" Moody barked out in his usual fashion, abnormal blue eye spinning around wildly in its socket with the other beady one focused in on Harry. "Follow me." _

_The Order was stuck in Grimmauld Place, forced into a corner after Hogwarts had been destroyed. The house was packed with people, so Harry wasn't surprised when Moody led them to his own room – he knew that the paranoid ex-Auror would have dozens of spells put over his bedroom to keep out any eavesdroppers and would-be thieves. _

_When they entered the room, Moody gestured for Harry to take a chair as he himself sat on his rusty old bed. When they were seated, both eyes focused in on Harry, giving him the odd feeling of being examined like a bug in a microscope. _

_"Potter," Moody said. "You've been slacking. Why?"_

_Harry blinked at the bluntness but shrugged it off; he shouldn't have expected anything else from Moody. Quickly he ran through all of the excuses he could before settling on one that he thought Moody might accept._

_"It'll be Halloween soon, sir," he said quietly. Moody was silent for a moment; everyone knew the significance of Halloween to Harry._

_"You're lying Potter," Moody said and although his voice hadn't softened, it had lost the edge the old ex-Auror had had before. "It's a good lie, yes, but I've been working as an Auror longer than you've been alive. I know how to spot the best of them. Now, would you mind telling me the truth, or we going to be sitting here all night while you use up all your excuses?"_

_Harry stiffened and looked down at his hands, wondering how to go from here. He could continue to lie, but Moody had already spotted his best one so he didn't doubt he'd recognize the rest of them. He could stay silent, but he had no doubt Moody would keep him here until he confessed. It looked like his only option was to tell the truth but……_

_Moody seemed to sense his hesitancy, "I'm not one of your little pals, Potter," he said roughly, but not unkindly. "Whatever you hit me with, I can take."_

_Harry knew that was true. He couldn't contemplate telling this to Hermione or Ron, even if they were his best friends. Moody was an Auror, and had been for a long time, so he must have seen horrible things in his lifetime. Perhaps Harry could tell him. It wasn't like he had anything to lose. He sighed deeply and raised his eyes to meet Moody's._

_"The link is getting worse," he said. Moody stiffened. "I get visions whenever I sleep – blood, gore, rape, beatings, torture……I had to watch a muggle family die last night. The wife was raped repeatedly while her husband and five year old son watched," Harry's voice was flat. "Then they placed Imperio on the father and made him rape his son and wife before killing them. He killed himself soon after." _

_Moody's face was just as stoic as Harry's, "Be that as it may, that's still no reason to slack Potter. I'd say that's a reason to work even harder, wouldn't you?"_

_Harry sighed again, "I can't sleep, Moody. Every time I close my eyes all I can see is blood and torture. I can't concentrate, I can't think……" he rubbed a hand across his face. "I feel like I'm falling apart at the bloody seams."_

_His hand never left his face as he heard Moody stand up, fake leg clinking on the floor as he moved to Harry's side. He placed a warm, heavy hand on Harry's shoulder, making the boy finally look up at him._

_"I'll talk to Snape about making a potion. In the meantime, use Dreamless Sleep as often as you dare and for Merlin's sake, _eat_ Potter. I shouldn't have to tell you that food will help if you don't get enough sleep."_

_Harry nodded wearily and, with his head down, missed the slight softening of Moody's eyes. "Go get some sleep Potter. I expect you to be in your usual form by the end of the week at the latest."_

_"Yes sir," Harry said and shuffled out of the room._

_Moody watched him go with hard eyes before sighing and sitting heavily on his bed. "What are we going to do now?"_

_-End Dream Sequence-_

**Feudal Era, the Western Lands  
****The 17****th**** of May**

Long lines of smoke trailed out from Haruki's mouth as he exhaled on the crushed cigarette in his hand. He was lucky that he still had his wand when he landed in the Feudal Era – Transfiguration made it easy to get the "death-sticks" as Hermione would have called them. An affectionate smile spread across his face as he thought of his friend; she had been forever blaming Bill for getting him hooked on cigarettes. He shook his head, inhaling more of the smoke. Bill _had_ been the one to get him started, but the calming sensation of smoking had kept him hooked. Haruki looked up at the night sky as he continued to smoke and felt the tension drain out of him; nighttime was his favorite part of the day.

The best part, in his opinion, was the darkest, deepest part of the night; the early morning hours where the sun still hadn't risen and the world was asleep. There was something wonderful about knowing that he was the only person awake – that he could do whatever he wanted and no one would know. It was, in a way, his "alone time" because during the day he was always with _someone_ whether it be Kamin, Sesshoumaru, or one of the numerous guards that managed to damage their weapons. Haruki wasn't a particularly private person but there were times when he just wanted to have some _space_.

Haruki crushed the cigarette into dust in the palm of his hand before letting the ashes scatter to the winds. He made his way to the middle of the flat rooftop he usually snuck up to when he wanted to have some "alone time" before laying down on the slightly cool stones. He relaxed as he took in the brightly shining stars above him that stood out even more in the blue-black sky without a moon to hinder them. The night was one of those perfect spring nights; not too cold, but with a hint of a breeze so it wasn't too hot.

As Haruki relaxed into the cold stone below him, his mind wandered to the reason he was up here to begin with; the dreams. When he'd first arrived in this world, he'd had numerous dreams of his old life; flashes of memories, visions of the imagined future. The dreams had started to drift as the years went by, making Haruki wonder why exactly they had come back in such vivid detail for one night.

He didn't know if time moved differently here than it did in his old world, but he had no doubt that by now his friends would've moved on from his disappearance. Absently he wondered if Hermione and Ron had gotten married yet, if Ginny had finally given into Neville, if Snape had stopped feeling guilty, if Remus and Tonks had any children yet……

In some ways he regretted leaving that life behind, but knowing the reward for what he did – the destruction of Voldemort – he felt happy about it. He'd gladly sacrifice himself if it meant that the people he loved could live happily, and if it meant that children could grow up without fear and war hanging over their heads.

Haruki was drawn from his thoughts when he felt the presence of a certain Inu behind him. Sighing he drawled out, "You can come out not Sesshoumaru," without moving his gaze from the stars above him. He heard the sounds Sesshoumaru's light steps made against the stone roof until the young Inu youkai stopped by his side, staring down at his face with blank golden eyes.

"Haruki-san," he murmured, seating himself at Haruki's elbow.

Haruki turned to look at him, "What are you doing up here Sesshoumaru? Isn't part your bedtime……?" he added a note of teasing into his voice, trying to keep the exhaustion and pain from re-awakening memories out of his voice.

Sesshoumaru scowled lightly, "I could not sleep," he said simply, looking out at the darkened rolls of hills surrounding the castle.

Haruki softened, "A nightmare Sesshoumaru?"

The Inu shook his head. Cautiously he looked at Haruki out of the corner of his eye, as if debating what to tell him, before saying aloud, "It was a memory."

Haruki sat up, "A memory of what?" he asked, curious now. Sesshoumaru rarely showed distress; despite Kamin's outgoing nature, his son was more like him than anyone else. They both were as stubborn as mules and didn't like to accept help. It was highly irregular for Sesshoumaru to actually tell him what was bothering him……and for the Inu to do that, whatever he had remembered must have been bad.

Sesshoumaru hesitated again, "……Of hahaue," he said quietly.

Haruki was also silent for a minute. He knew next to nothing about Sesshoumaru's mother; he'd guessed from her absence that she'd died, but Kamin had told him no details and he hadn't had the heart to ask Sesshoumaru.

"Do you want to tell me what happened?" Haruki said, looking back up at the sky. He didn't want to pressure Sesshoumaru into anything, since it was likely all that would accomplish would be to scare the boy away. However he was immensely curious and, more than that, he wanted to help Sesshoumaru. The kid had grown on him.

Sesshoumaru hesitated before saying in a soft voice almost too low for Haruki's ears to hear (and that was saying something), "……Hahaue died a year before you came here, Haruki-san. She got sick easily……Chichiue said that it had something to do with her bloodline. The healers could not do anything for her……They said that her body was eating itself away, that the cells were piling up and the body was rejecting them……" Harry winced; the symptoms sounded eerily like cancer in his world. "There was nothing they could do, not even to ease her pain. She died screaming," Sesshoumaru's voice was far away and when Haruki turned to look at the younger youkai he saw a dead look in the golden eyes. He sighed before pulling Sesshoumaru into his side. The cub gave him a surprised look but didn't pull away, perhaps too shaken from his dreams to reject the comfort.

"I was with her on the day she died," he said quietly. "She was so pale – paler than normal – and her lips were dry and chapped because she couldn't swallow anything. You could see her ribs – count them one by one……" Haruki felt Sesshoumaru shudder. "Whenever I dream of her that is all I see; her bony body and face, the lifeless look in her eyes……Why can't I remember how she was when she was healthy? When she was beautiful?"

Haruki was silent for a moment before saying, "When I was 15 I saw my godfather die," he ignored Sesshoumaru's startled look and continued to talk. "He was the closest thing I had to a parent; my family had died when I was a baby, thanks to a crazy man who hated what they were. Sirius wasn't perfect, but he was there for me during my hard times and I loved him dearly. The same man who killed parents ordered his death……and his cousin was the one to carry the orders out. For the two years after that whenever I thought of him, all I could see was the day he died. When I came here and started to be a blacksmith……I began to remember how he used to be; funny, playful, mischievous……How he would've wanted me to remember him."

Sesshoumaru had regained his poise, but his eyes never left Haruki's face as he continued to talk.

"Personally, I think grief needs time; time to heal, time to re-build. It's like a scar. Eventually it closes but you'll always see it there on your skin; it'll always be around to remind you of the past. Your mother only died about two years ago; I'm not surprised that you're haunted by her."

Haruki fell silent, and Sesshoumaru hesitantly relaxed into the older youkai's side, resting his head on Haruki's shoulder. The kurohyou smiled down at him before returning his gaze to the stars, getting lost in his thoughts. When he looked down again he was surprised to find that Sesshoumaru had fallen asleep on him – the cub had never been one to let down his guard around anyone other than his father. Haruki smiled softly before scooping the younger Inu up into his arms and standing so he could carry him back to his rooms.

* * *

**The Western Lands  
****The 9****th**** of June**

"Haruki!" the kurohyou hanyou looked up as Kamin stormed into his smith, eyes flashing. "Come with me, now!" Haruki immediately put down his tools and followed. He'd learned by now when it wasn't a good idea to snap back at Kamin for ordering him around, and when the Inu was this angry, it would do better for him to keep his head down and stay quiet.

Kamin led him back into the castle until they reached what Haruki knew to be the Inu lord's private rooms. Kamin swept the doors open, leaving Haruki to follow him into the extravagant rooms that he'd seen only once before.

"Sit!" Kamin barked, seating himself in one of the green velvet chairs near the window. Haruki sat down on the table in front of the chair cross-legged, making Kamin scowl, though the Inu youkai said nothing. Haruki's eyebrow rose; something must have really been bothering the lord if he didn't protest Haruki's informal seat.

"What happened?" he questioned softly, and Kamin sighed, raking a hand through his hair.

"I need you to make four hundred swords, all standard style, in the next three weeks," he said tersely.

Haruki blinked in surprise, "I can do it, if I work all day and night," he said calmly, a part of his mind already working out how much time it would take him to complete, and what he would need in order to finish. "I'll need more metal, and your permission to work into the night."

Kamin nodded, "You have it, of course."

Haruki's eyes narrowed and he said, "Now would you mind telling me what exactly I'm making these swords _for_?"

Kamin gave a wry smile; trust Haruki to come right out and say it. "We're going to war," he said quietly. "In a month or perhaps two if it comes to it. The swords are for the new trainees."

"War?" Haruki's eyes were wide and filled with an emotion Kamin couldn't name. "Fucking hell, _war_?!"

Kamin rolled his eyes, "Yes, _war_, Haruki-kun. Do I need to spell it out for you?"

"With who?!" Haruki asked angrily, his tail bristling behind him and his ears lying flat on his head. Soon after he'd arrived, he'd abandoned hiding his hanyou traits, as Kamin's castle was much more accepting of him than his old town. "Why?"

Kamin sighed, "Ryuu youkai are rising up against us; the details aren't yet known, but they've sent their demands for war with the bodies of some of my patrollers." He ran a weary hand over his face. "I sent word to the Lords of the Lands, and they have confirmed that the warriors have sent demands for war to every country. In three weeks, the Lords will be coming to talk about an alliance."

"They challenged all four Lands?!" Haruki asked, incredulous. "Kami, are they insane? They'll get crushed like little ants! We'll beat their asses into the fucking dust!"

Kamin smirked but shook his head, "As far as we can tell, a Ryuu named Ryuukotsusei is the leader of this band of youkai; he's a very powerful, very _old_ youkai, and he's cunning and wily as well. With him as a general, any army would be powerful. Adding to that Ryuu youkai are naturally powerful and hard to kill, that gives you an unstoppable force, never mind that their army is much smaller compared to ours."

"But still!" Haruki protested. "Surely the sheer numbers will overwhelm them……!"

Kamin shook his head, "In this case, numbers won't make a difference. Remember the saying you're always using for your weapons; quality over quantity. If Ryuukotsusei has the better warriors, then no amount of numbers will be able to stop him."

"Don't say _if_ he has the better warriors," Haruki said sharply. "He doesn't know who he's messing with, the arrogant fucker. If anything crushes the Lands it'll be the force of his humongous ego," he muttered under his breath, though Kamin's amused snort told him that the Inu had heard it as well. "I'll get those swords ready, and so help me if I find that you're going easy on those idiots you call trainees, I'll flay your ass," he added fiercely, making Kamin blink. "We'll just have to show this _Ryuukotsusei_," the name dripped with sarcastic disdain, "who exactly he's messing with."

* * *

**Three Weeks Later**

It was when Haruki was finishing the touches of the last of the four hundred swords that the Lords of the Lands arrived. Typically it was with a loud bang and a lot of cheering and shouting from the guards. Haruki rolled his eyes before returning his attention to the final sword until he was satisfied with it. Then he shoved it into a plain brown sheath and put it with the last fifty, ready to be taken to the trainees who were soon to graduate especially for the war.

Haruki didn't like that he was being involved in another war so soon after being in one of his own, but this was his _home_, and he didn't like the thought of an arrogant idiot thinking he could take it away. If there was one thing about him that would never change it was that he protected what he loved fiercely.

Haruki was drawn from his thoughts when he heard footsteps and voices coming closer to his forge. His eyes widened in horror as he heard Kamin's voice among them and he had the time to think - _'if he's doing what I think he's doing, he's dead'_ – before the door swung open to reveal Kamin and three others behind him.

"Haruki-kun," Kamin said with a touch of nervousness; Haruki really couldn't blame him, since he was feeling particularly pissed at the idiot. "Ah……my guests wanted to meet my ever-so famous blacksmith so……" he trailed off, obviously seeing the dangerous look in Haruki's eyes.

"Next time you bring nobles in here without my permission, I'm stringing you up to the ceiling by your innards," he hissed lowly, pleased by the shudder it invoked in the Inu. Good to know he could still be scary when he wanted to be. A low, shuddery laugh distracted his attention to the three guests.

"My, he _is_ a feisty one, isn't he?" the only woman of the group stepped forward, her movements so feline that Haruki didn't have to rely on his nose to tell him she was a Neko. "But you always _did_ like defiance, Kamin-kun," she purred, flipping her long tawny hair over one shoulder as bright blue eyes scanned over Haruki's face. Suddenly she stopped in her movements and gave a long sniff before a brilliant smile overcame her tanned features. "A kurohyou youkai! Kamin-kun, why didn't you tell me you had one in your service?"

"Likely, he didn't want ya t' steal 'im away," said one of the men lazily, stepping into the light next to the Neko Lady. His looks were the complete opposite of hers; his eyes were dark chocolate and his hair was short and black. Haruki could scent Ookami all over him. "Ya are known for takin' anythin' that interests ya, Miaka-chan."

Miaka pouted, "You're no fun Keiji-kun!"

"You know he likes to rile you up Miaka-chan," the final noble said teasingly, stepping forward so the single lamp in the forge shone off his red hair and narrow green eyes. Haruki's eyebrow lifted at the three thick, bushy tails trailing behind him that marked him as a Kitsune, even if his scent hadn't been openly proclaiming it.

"Would you mind introducing the guests you've forced on me Kamin?" Haruki asked calmly, interrupting the trio's bantering. Kamin nodded, obviously relieved that the worst of the hanyou's anger had passed.

"Haruki-kun, this is the Lady of the South, Amarante Miaka," he waved a hand in the neko's direction and she curtsied mockingly to him. "The two men are the Lord of the North, Makoto Keiji and the Lord of the East, Mitsu Yuuta." The Ookami flashed him a fanged grin and the final lord, a Kitsune, bowed his head with a smile. "Lords – and Lady," Kamin added hastily at Miaka's nasty look, "this is Yami Haruki, my blacksmith."

"Well now that we're through with the pleasantries," Haruki said with obvious annoyance. "Would you mind telling me what exactly you bunch are doing down here?"

"Kamin-kun kept going on and on about his wonderful blacksmith, so we just had to come down and see you darling!" Miaka cooed, waving a hand in the air. Haruki smirked in amusement when he saw Kamin blushing.

"Well you've seen me. Now shoo, go make plans or do whatever it is you nobles do. Kamin, the swords are done, and I'll leave them outside for your trainees to pick up," he added in to the Inu.

"Ya managed t' finish four hundred swords on yer own in _three weeks_?" Keiji, the Northern Lord, asked in amazement. "Kamin, ya gotta tell me where ya found this one, I need that kinda blacksmith back at my castle."

"Considering that this war affects me as well, I decided I had better do everything I could to make sure we win," Haruki said dryly. "This is the first break I've had in three weeks, and that's only because the swords are done, or I would've never let you in to begin with."

Yuuta, the Kitsune youkai, laughed throatily, "He's very blunt isn't he?" he asked Kamin in amusement. "I can see why you like him so much."

"Look not that your presence isn't welcome or anything," Haruki said, ignoring Kamin's snort of disbelief, "but don't you have an alliance to be planning?"

"Oh we already did that darling," Miaka said with a nelignant wave of her hand. "It wasn't a hard decision to make, seeing as we can only beat them by banding together. Now all that's left to do is to make plans and wait for another attack or more information."

Haruki sighed and moved back to start picking up the new swords, talking as he did so, "I would wait for another attack if I was you."

Keiji perked up, "Oh? An' why is that?"

"Well," Haruki heaved the swords out of the forge, wincing when they dropped heavily, before turning back to get more. "Unless you have complete faith in your information network, it's best to wait. You said this Ryuukotsusei was an old, powerful youkai right?" Kamin nodded. "Well he probably has a lot of respect around here, yeah? Your informants could be intimidated by him, or he could bribe them with power or money……"

"We can't just wait!" Yuuta said. "He'll have the element of surprise! We'll be left to scramble after him and hope we can get there in time!"

Haruki shrugged, "I'm just saying that you should be careful who you trust. It seems to me that youkai are just as suspectible to trechary as ningen, if not more so. You have to make sure you're the one giving them the better offer so they don't decide to change sides."

"Not only a blacksmith, but a tactician as well, hm?" Keiji murmured.

Haruki rolled his eyes, "It's not my fault if you don't have the common sense to see past your own nose," he bit out, ignoring Yuuta's muffled laughter and Kamin's look of horror.

Keiji, however, was amused instead of angry, "Hm. Well since yer obviously well-suited, would ya mind showin' the rest of us mortals th' best way t' attack then, kitten?"

Haruki stiffened at the nickname, "Keiji-san," he said with extremely fake politeness, "if you call me that name one more time I'll make sure that there won't be any little ookami princes running around for a very, _very_ long time. Clear?" Just for dramatic effect, he picked up his hammer with an obvious gleam in his eye. Keiji backed off quickly after that.

"Well now that you're done flirting," Miaka said with another low laugh, "let us go back to the castle, hm? Haruki-kun, you _must_ come with us and stun us with more of your brilliance……I've been trying to shut up Keiji for _years_ and you manage to do it in one meeting with him……!"

As Miaka pulled him out of the forge, Haruki sent a desperate look Kamin's way, only to be faced with an amused smirk. _'I'm marking out a place on the Dining Hall ceiling'_ he thought darkly as Miaka continued to chatter and pull him towards the castle. _'We'll see who's laughing when he's hanging there by his toes!'_

* * *

**Author's Note:** Yeah, I don't like this chapter that much, but next chapter will be so much better –evil laughter-. It's short, but hey, at least I got it out faster right? You guys rock; I can't believe how many reviews I've gotten for this story. Keep up the good work and send me more ;D. Next Chapter will be up soon, cause my muse is eager to write some ass-kicking XD.

**Next Chapter:** Sesshoumaru gets a –arse kicking- _talking to_ from Haruki XD.


	7. Chapter Three: The Daiyoukai

**Author's Notes:** The long awaited chapter XD. Yes, it's extremely short. But better a short chapter than no chapter at all, _ne_? Leave a review!

**Warning:** Haruki abuses his italics privileges. Bad kitty. No more emphasized words for you.

* * *

**More Than Useless  
****Chapter Three: The Daiyoukai**

Call it a clan, call it a network, call it a tribe, call it a family. Whatever you call it, whoever you are, you need one. (Jane Howard)

Every moment is a chance to turn things around. (Vanilla Sky)

"First weigh the considerations, then take the risks." (Helmuth von Moltke)

The weak can never forgive. Forgiveness is the attribute of the strong. (Mahatma Gandhi)

Forgiveness is love in its most noble form. (Anon)

"Pray you now, forgive and forget." (William Shakespeare)

"Never refuse any advance of friendship, for if nine out of ten bring you nothing, one alone may repay you." (Madame de Tencin)

"The only way to make a man trustworthy is to trust him." (Henry Stimson)

"Am I not destroying my enemies when I make friends of them?" (Abraham Lincoln)

Anyone can become angry -- that is easy. But to be angry with the right person, to the right degree, at the right time, for the right purpose, and in the right way -- this is not easy. (Aristotle)

"Sometimes it's easier livin' the lie." (Anon)

"I liked things better when I didn't understand them." (Bill Watterson)

* * *

**The Western Lands  
October 7th**

_"It's good to see you again," he said softly, ignoring the human's gasps. His eyes locked with gold ones. "Sesshoumaru."_

Had it been a different situation, with anyone else, Haruki would've been cackling evilly at the look of shock on Sesshoumaru's normally stoic face. As it was, all he could do was stare levelly at the youkai he'd known so long ago.

"H-Haruki?" _'That's the first time I've ever heard him stutter,'_ Haruki thought absently, but stayed silent. Sesshoumaru, seeing Haruki's poise, quickly regained his own mask. "What are you doing here?"

"Everything you never bothered to do," Haruki said with a very audible growl in his voice. He started to slowly stalk around Sesshoumaru, his eyes never leaving the youkai. "Helping _your_ _younger brother_, teaching him _what you never bothered to_, making sure he doesn't give himself killed instead of _trying to kill him_!"

"Haruki—"

"No, just shut your mouth, Sesshoumaru! You are nothing but _scum_, an arrogant son of a bitch with no feelings for anyone but yourself. You had a fucking _little brother to take care of_ and what do you do?! You let him fend for himself for _150 years_ of his life! He should have been brought up by _you_! What kind of disgusting parasite are you, that you would ignore your vulnerable little brother?! That you would let him go into harm's way, that you wouldn't even lift a finger to protect him?!"

"He is a hanyou—" Sesshoumaru tried to interrupt, but all his troubles earned him was a particularly violent glare.

"Have you forgotten what I am, Sesshoumaru, or do you lack the mental capacity to think?" Haruki asked acidly. "I was your father's right hand for the better part of the Youkai Wars, he was the only one who could defeat me in a duel, and yet you think being a hanyou is somehow a _handicap_?! Your brother's potential is so great that someday he will be more powerful than I am! But only with the proper training that _you denied him_! How dare you try to blame this on his_ blood_ when you know it is of no consequence whatsoever!"

"I thought Kamin had raised you better than that! Instead of _raising your younger brother_ like you should have, you _threw him to the winds_ and left him to make his own way! And all because of what – your fucking prejudices?! No keep your mouth shut," Haruki snapped as Sesshoumaru tried to speak. He distantly knew that the rest of the pack and Kouga were watching him with wide eyes, but he couldn't care less. He'd expected better of the youkai he'd tutored.

"Come with me," he snapped again, after a stretch of silence. Sesshoumaru stiffened, and a voice in the back of Haruki's head commented with amusement that it seemed the younger youkai never forgot the tone of voice Haruki used when he was going to beat Sesshoumaru's ass. "We're gonna have a little duel, _Sesshoumaru_." He ignored the panicked looks of the ningen. "If I win-" _'which we both know I will,'_ "—you will apologize to Inuyasha and help me teach him the ways of the Inu-youkai. I lose you're free to beat him up whenever you please, no interference from me. Deal?"

Sesshoumaru's face was back to its usual emotionless mask, but Haruki had been around the kid when he'd just begun to mask his emotions and could easily read the excitement off his face. Sesshoumaru, when he'd been growing up, had never been able to defeat Haruki. He'd come close a couple of times, but Haruki was one of the best. And after he'd disappeared, the hanyou doubted Sesshoumaru had found anyone to challenge him beyond his younger brother. The downside of becoming too good was the lack of challenging opponents. Sesshoumaru was probably eager to test his skills against someone who could challenge him.

"I agree," Sesshoumaru said quietly, and Haruki smirked to himself. _'Bait taken,'_ he thought smugly.

"Then follow me." Haruki stalked off to an open clearing with enough space that the ningen wouldn't get in the way. He debated taking off some of his swords but decided against it – Sesshoumaru had been skilled even as a cub, and Haruki had no doubt that he'd only gotten better as the years went by. This was going to be a hard match.

He looked over to see Sesshoumaru opposite him, taking off some of his armor. He smirked; the youkai obviously remembered that Haruki's main skill was in his speed. Taking off some of his weight would help Sesshoumaru keep up with him, even if it left him somewhat vulnerable to attacks. _'Clever, Sesshoumaru.'_

"I am ready," Sesshoumaru said calmly, one of his hands curling around the hilt of his sword as the other rose in front of him, glowing acidic green at the tips. Haruki shifted until he was on the balls of his feet, and brought his own hand down to the hilt of his oldest and favorite sword, _Kokushibyou_.

"As am I," he responded calmly.

The clearing was silent for a moment as the two demons watched each other carefully, each waiting for the other to make the first move. Then, suddenly, Sesshoumaru disappeared from sight, causing Kagome to give a startled scream, and reappeared in front of Haruki, poison-tipped claws reaching out for the hanyou's neck. Haruki instantly drew back, his sword flashing in his hand as he blocked the slice Sesshoumaru had shot at him after his initial attack.

Haruki was usually a defensive fighter. He preferred to dodge and duck instead of attack, letting his opponents wear themselves out trying to catch him. But Sesshoumaru was a hard fighter, and he'd been trained by not only Kamin, but Haruki himself as well. The hanyou couldn't afford to use his usual tricks to get out of this fight. So instead, he pressed forward, enjoying Sesshoumaru's slightly widened eyes – the youkai's version of surprise. Sparks flashed as the two swords met each other in hard, strong clashes.

Haruki may not have been aware of it, but the watching ningen certainly saw the fierce grin over-taking their new companions face as he fought with Sesshoumaru. They could hardly comprehend _why_ Haruki would be _happy_ of all things – after all, why would anyone enjoy fighting with _Sesshoumaru_?

But enjoy it, Haruki did. Sesshoumaru hadn't been the only one without a challenge – he hadn't found anyone who could fight him on even ground for years. Actually, since Kamin died there had only been two demons who could fight him and win – Naraku was one, while the other was Sesshoumaru himself. Inuyasha, of course, had the potential, as did Kouga, but they would need much more training before they could defeat him.

_That_ was why he was grinning, and why he was so happy. Although ningen like to dramatize it, they are right when they say that youkai love to fight. That, of course, isn't true for all youkai – it's like saying all ningen had the same shaped eyes, or the same colored hair. But most of them enjoyed the adrenaline rush, the pounding of blood in their head, the fierce, rushing feeling of their youki clashing against someone else's. Haruki was no exception.

He growled when Sesshoumaru managed to get a swipe on his thigh with his poison claws, instantly feeling the numbing sensation spread throughout his leg. He wasn't that worried – hanyous had particularly strong healing powers – but the wound would hinder him, and he couldn't afford to have a disability when he was fighting Sesshoumaru.

He forced himself to go faster, to ignore the wounds on his leg and the rest of the places where Sesshoumaru had gotten a blow in. He _had_ to win this, because Sesshoumaru and Inuyasha needed to reunite. Why he had this certain feeling that their partnership had to come to be, he had no idea, but he was sure it wasn't _just_ a feeling. When you lived as a hanyou long enough, you learned to trust your instincts.

Sesshoumaru was surprised when Haruki's attacks sped up instead of slowed down after he got hit with poison. The slices of his sword were sharper, his footing was faster, and he got more hits in during those moments after the wound than he had during the entire battle. Sesshoumaru was surprised to find that he was being completely overwhelmed by his old teacher and friend.

Haruki ended the battle mainly through luck, in his opinion. He'd managed to back Sesshoumaru into an edge of the clearing, and the youkai had been so preoccupied with fighting back Haruki's suddenly vicious attacks that he hadn't noticed he was trapped until his back hit a tree trunk. Startled, he'd dropped his guard, giving Haruki the time to hit his sword from his hand. Instantly the point was back at Sesshoumaru's throat, while Haruki's own claws aimed at his stomach, bleeding black at the tips and clearly stating a threat if the youkai tried to reach for another weapon. Sesshoumaru glared at Haruki but, after a moment of staring, lowered his head slightly to concede defeat. Instantly the weapons moved away and Haruki stumbled back, exhausted.

"Inuyasha is gone at the moment," he told Sesshoumaru intensely. The youkai looked up from where he'd been picking up his sword and re-sheathing it. "When he comes back you _will_ apologize to him. After that, you'll help me train him in the ways of the Inu-youkai. Kamin told me a lot, but not everything." Haruki ran a hand down his now messy braid with a sigh. "I definitely can't teach Inuyasha everything," he muttered.

"I will keep my word," Sesshoumaru said regally, making the hanyou look up at him in surprise. Haruki smiled.

"Looks like you didn't change that much," he muttered affectionately, most of his anger gone thanks to his rant and their fight.

"This Sesshoumaru will wait until otouto comes back and then I will leave to pick up my charges," the youkai said quietly. "I will be back tomorrow at dawn at the latest."

Haruki sighed. "Alright. But remember I can track you down easier than you find your way around your castle, Sesshoumaru. If you're not back, I'll hunt you down and drag you back, charges or not."

Sesshoumaru's lip curled into a barely noticeable smirk. "Understood."

* * *

When Inuyasha came back to camp, he was greeted with the most bizarre sight he'd ever seen in his life. And considering the type of characters he'd seen on his travels, with his pack or without it that was saying something.

His brother, obviously calm and not intent on killing anyone in the immediate area, was sitting next to Haruki, who also looked peaceful, near the fire. Across from them was his pack and Kouga, the humans watching the pair with wide eyes while the wolf just smirked. The demons in the group instantly looked up as he approached, but Inuyasha snapped a large branch so the humans would be able to hear him coming as well.

"Inuyasha!" Kagome shrieked, and the hanyou's ears flattened against his skull. "Where's Kikyou?!"

"She just left," Inuyasha said gruffly, his eyes never leaving the form of his brother and his new tutor. "Sesshoumaru, what in hell are you doing here?"

Cool golden eyes met with his and locked. "This Sesshoumaru came to fight you, hanyou. Instead I found Haruki and we came to an – arrangement."

Inuyasha slid a wary glance Haruki's way and frowned when he saw that the kurohyou was smirking. "What kind of arrangement?" he asked cautiously.

Sesshoumaru's lip tilted up ever so slightly before he rose to his feet, hand on his sword hilt. Inuyasha's hand instantly went to his own sword, but Haruki's warning look stopped him. He trusted the hanyou, so he waited to attack, but his hand stayed on the hilt of Tetsusaiga all the same.

Sesshoumaru drew his sword, and Inuyasha's eyes widened as he took in Tenseiga. "I, Isei Sesshoumaru, declare my long-lasting and sincere apologies to my half-brother, Isei Inuyasha, for grievances against his person and insults against his lineage and choices. By the sword of the father we both share, I ask for forgiveness and reconciliation between us." He knelt stiffly, placing his sword point down and resting his head against its hilt in a position of submission. Inuyasha, shocked stiff, couldn't move or speak.

He turned to look at Haruki, who only gave him a probing look with glowing green eyes, and then looked back at the kneeling figure of his brother. He swallowed shakily and approached the bent figure. Sesshoumaru looked up as he came near, cool golden eyes just as emotionless as ever.

"I . . . ." Inuyasha trailed off uncertainly. He took another look at Haruki before continuing to speak, in a stronger voice. "I, Isei Inuyasha, accept my half-brother, Isei Sesshoumaru's apology. From this day onward there will be no bad blood between us, and any insult will be considered a thing of the past." He held out a hand to Sesshoumaru, who stared at it for a long moment before accepting. Inuyasha drew his brother to his feet, and they looked at each other for a long moment before turning away.

When Inuyasha looked Haruki's way he wasn't surprised to see the hanyou smiling in satisfaction. When Haruki noticed his look, the smile grew. "I'm pleased for you, Inuyasha," he said warmly. "You too, Sesshoumaru. It seems to me that this has been needed for a long time."

"INUYASHA!" Both hanyous winced as Kagome's shriek filled the air. "What are you thinking, accepting something like that! He's probably just tricking you so he can steal the jewel swords, or Tetsusaiga! You're so stupid!" She didn't notice the way Sesshoumaru's eyes flashed when she spoke or how Haruki's face tightened. If she had, she might have had a little common sense and wouldn't have uttered her next words. "SIT BOY!"

Inuyasha slammed into the ground, creating a huge hole. He sat up again almost instantly, grumbling curses, but the three other demons in the group noticed his nearly invisible flinch as he moved. Kagome was just about to yell another couple sits when a hand closed over her mouth, sheared claws marking it as Sesshoumaru's.

"Your voice grates on this Sesshoumaru's ears," he murmured softly. "My apology is sincere, which you would know if you had any brains in that idiotic head of yours. And since I have re-accepted my role as the hanyou's brother, you will cease with pummeling him into the ground when it is clearly undeserved." He stepped away, releasing her face. "Or I will make it so you don't speak again."

He turned to Inuyasha, who had watched the exchange with shock, and then shrugged before returning to Haruki's side. "I will take my leave now," he told the hanyou quietly. "Rin and the toad will be waiting for me."

"Be back by dawn," Haruki said simply and Sesshoumaru disappeared in a flash. He turned to Kagome, who looked like she'd frozen from the shock of being told off by Sesshoumaru, and gave her a stern glare.

"He's right, you know. You may not trust him, but I do, and if Inuyasha decides to follow his instincts, then you have no right to _punish_ him for doing so. Especially in such a childish manner." He sneered and Kagome blushed. "Where did you get those beads that brought him to the ground?"

Kagome glared at him defensively. "Kaede, a village miko."

Haruki's gaze turned thoughtful. "Kikyou's little sister, isn't she? Hmm . . . well if she's anything like Kikyou, then she meant no harm. She must not have known what those beads are used for." He turned his gaze back to Kagome. "You should take them off."

"Why?" she asked with a toss of her hair, obviously not intending to do it no matter what he said.

"Foolish girl, you don't know what they're used for, do you?" Haruki asked, anger in his voice. Miroku stepped forward before Kagome could say anything else.

"What are they used for, Haruki-sama?" he asked, with a frown marring his face. "I had not heard of that type of beads before I saw them on Inuyasha."

Haruki spared another dark glance at Kagome before turning to the priest. "They are used as submission necklaces for youkai slaves," he snapped. The humans gasped. "It was in the older days when they still used them, priest, which is why you would've never heard of them. Youkai that were captured were locked in them, and thus humans were able to subdue the most powerful with a single word." His voice was bitter. "So, how does it feel to be a slave owner, miko?" he asked a horrified Kagome. "Doesn't it give you a rush of power every time you send someone like Inuyasha to his knees? Do you enjoy being in control of him?"

"Stop it, Haruki," Inuyasha said, shooting a worried glance Kagome's way.

"You never saw what they did with those things, Inuyasha," Haruki snapped angrily. "And even if _she_ didn't, she has no right to punish you when it's so clearly undeserved! I don't care what romantic fantasies she has about it, all that necklace can be used for is destruction."

"Were you under one?" Kouga interrupted curiously. Haruki shivered.

"No," he said softly. "But I had a couple of friends who were. One of them killed herself and the other two were broken by the time we got them away."

"But the necklace I'm wearing doesn't hurt me unless Kagome says sit . . . ." Inuyasha said in bemusement.

"You probably wouldn't notice, Inuyasha," Haruki said wearily. He turned to the rest of the group. "Does he give into her demands easily? Can she bend him to her will easily? Does he feel an overwhelming need to protect her no matter the danger to himself?"

"Well, yes, but that's because . . . ." Miroku said and then trailed off. Haruki snorted.

"Alright, I give you it could be because he loves her. But they're also characteristics shown by those controlled by a binding necklace. Complete protection and submission to the owner. The owner comes before the slave." Haruki sounded bitter.

Kagome was shaking slightly and there were tears gathering in the corners of her eyes. "I don't know how to get rid of it," she said, ready to comply now that she knew Haruki's reasons for hating the necklace. It made her feel sick to consider that Inuyasha may have been helping her because of the necklace instead of out of his own free will.

Haruki smiled wearily at her. "_I release this hanyou from my service_," he said. "_These beads can no longer control him._ Say that, with your hands over the beads."

Kagome approached Inuyasha, who pulled out the beads so they were over his fire-rat robes. She placed trembling hands over the blue beads and closed her eyes. "_I release this hanyou from my service. These beads can no longer control him_."

The beads fell away as the string of the necklace untwined, becoming a tangle of threads. Kagome stepped back from Inuyasha, who looked surprised and amazed.

"Haruki . . . ." he said, raising wide eyes to look at his fellow hanyou. Haruki just gave him a sad smile.

Inuyasha could sense everything. His senses, which had seemed so wonderfully sharp before, were 10 times better now. But it was more than that. He could sense the forest around him in a way he'd never imagined. The spirits of the trees were painfully clear to him now, he could sense animals miles away, and the great heartbeat of the land beneath his feet thumped in his ears. It was like he'd been smothered his entire life and only now was coming out from under the blanket, to see the world as it truly was. Inuyasha trembled from the intensity of it and felt, for the first time since his mother died, tears coming into his eyes. He turned to Kagome, who was regarding him with surprise.

"Thank you," he said in a choked voice, and Kagome gave him a sad smile.

"It wasn't me," she said softly, turning to look at Haruki. The hanyou could see that was grateful that he'd told her about the slave beads, that he'd made her break the connection she'd thought she'd had with Inuyasha and he gave her a smile. _'She's starting to grow up,'_ he thought with relief and happiness.

"Come," Haruki said quietly. "We should sleep. Sesshoumaru will be back tomorrow and then we will move on."

The ningen nodded and started to organize the bed rolls. Inuyasha didn't move but Haruki stayed where he was. Kouga, instead, moved forward to deal with the hanyou.

"C'mon, mutt," he muttered, nudging Inuyasha roughly with his shoulder. The hanyou started and blinked up at Kouga as if he were just waking up. "Little puppies should stay up past their bedtime," Kouga added, softening the condescending words with a wicked smile.

Inuyasha rolled his eyes, regaining his personality. "Doesn't that mean you should be asleep already, ookami?" he asked with a smirk. Kouga glared at him.

"What was that mutt?!" He pulled Inuyasha into a headlock. "I see I have to teach you exactly who's boss around here . . . ."

Haruki shook his head with a smile, watching their antics. He looked up at the rising moon and sighed. _'Hurry back, Sesshoumaru,'_ he thought. _'Something's coming and it isn't going to be pretty.'_

* * *

**Author's Note:** -ducks rotten tomatoes- Sorry it's so short! But I'm kinda busy with moving and packing (God, I never want to move again – boxes are _heavy_ and I'm choking from dust that's been sitting there for seven years) so I haven't had much time to write. I'm sorry I took so long on the much awaited chapter, and I hope Sesshoumaru's tongue lashing satisfied you all. Hopefully the next chapter will be up sooner, but I make no promises, as always. Please leave a review!


	8. Interlude Four: The StandStill

**Author's Note:** Thanks for all the reviews – you guys rock! And I'm so sorry for taking so long . . . . T.T

* * *

**More Than Useless  
****Interlude Four: The Stand-Still**

The friend is the man who knows all about you, and still likes you. (Elbert Hubbard, _The Notebook_, 1927)

Love is like the wild-rose briar;  
Friendship is like the holly-tree.  
The holly is dark when the rose briar blooms,  
But which will bloom most constantly? (Emily Brontë)

* * *

**The Western Lands**

"So there's been nothing?" Haruki asked, leaning back in his chair with a puzzled frown on his face. "They send a declaration of war, and then nothing happens?!"

Kamin sighed. "There have been a few sightings of their army – we believe that they're resting and preparing on the edge of the Western Lands. But no, there has not been any other contact with them. It's as if they've just disappeared."

"They're obviously preparin'," Keiji added from his place near the door. "Give 'em a few weeks and we're likely t' see more of 'em."

"But should we be waiting?!" Yuuta asked, his three tails twitching behind him from nervousness. "Maybe we should attack first!"

"We don't have any knowledge on them, darling," Miaka reminded him gently. "Not even how many youkai they've gathered. Perhaps when they attack we can send warriors to follow and spy on them – for now, all we _can_ do is wait."

Kamin nodded. "Our warriors are training as we speak. But onto other matters – have we decided whether my castle will be our stronghold, or to spread out across the lands?"

Miaka sighed. "Well that depends on them, darling. You say that there's been sighting of them on the Western border – perhaps it's best if we stay here, at the moment. When we learn more about how they work and what their plans are, then we'll decide whether we should separate or stay together. For now, our armies are staying at our castles, defending our lands. Right, darlings?" She looked to Keiji and Yuuta for confirmation. Both youkai nodded.

"Well that's good," Haruki said, stepping up from his chair. "I'm going to check on the trainees – likely, one of them will break their sword on the first try. There's always one," he muttered to himself, ignoring the amused look of his companions. "Kamin, Lords and Lady, I'll see you all at dinner."

He swept out of the room only to pop in again moments after. "By the way, Kamin, where exactly is Sesshoumaru?"

Kamin smiled. "He should be with the trainees, Haruki – I told him he could go down and watch them train today."

"Ah, good." Haruki disappeared again, leaving the lords alone.

Miaka turned to Kamin. "He really is a special one isn't he?" she asked him with a fond smile on her face.

Kamin grinned. "Yes, he's one of a kind."

* * *

Haruki sighed with exasperation as he pounded down on the broken sword. There always was _one_ person who broke their sword during training. How they did it, Haruki had no idea. But it was starting to get a little aggravating.

He gave one last hit and then moved to cool the sword down. He wiped off the sweat gathering on his forehead and then leaned the sword against the wall, pleased that it had been fixed so easily. The only good part about the broken swords was that they broke cleanly; all it took to fix them was to put the pieces back together, really.

Haruki gave a long sigh and then moved away from his forge, traveling outside. He avoided the training area and hurried to a deserted stretch of clearing. Carefully he sat cross-legged on the ground and took out his sword.

Kokushibyou was a relatively normal sword – for the most part. However, the runes Haruki had pressed into it were what made it different. They were runes from his world, ones that no one from the Lands would be able to recognize. They meant different things alone, but together they gave the sword the ability to harness and hold Haruki's magic.

Yes, his magic. Haruki had rarely used it since he'd dropped into the Feudal Era – only to make cigarettes from time to time. But he had his wand – it was just that he never felt the need to use his magic. He'd seen it used for such destructive purposes that he'd lost most of the wonder he'd had for it as an eleven year old child. But he knew that it was his best weapon – better than his sword-fighting because he'd been using magic for much longer than he had been with swords.

Haruki laid his sword on the ground beside him and closed his eyes. During the war in his past world, he had learned how to find his magical core. He had found that it had been blocked by Voldemort's attempt to kill him and that was why he had trouble with some magic and, most importantly, with mind magics such as Occlumency and Legilimency. Snape had been surprised to hear that. Haruki still wondered if the core on his magic was natural or made by the same person who had blocked his creature inheritance. However he didn't want to think about it. He was gone from that world, and it no longer mattered since the blocks were long gone.

Haruki exhaled deeply, and then slowly sunk into himself. It was a dangerous process to access his core; it left his body vulnerable since he couldn't react instantly to enemies. But Haruki had chosen this place because of how guarded and safe it was – next time he'd try a ward around it and see what happened, but for now he had faith that he would be safe. Slowly he fell deeper and deeper into himself until the outside world was lost to him. Haruki was in the mindset he'd used for creating his Occlumency barriers – it was the only way he'd be able to view his magic. Haruki sighted his magic and carefully his inner-self made its way to it, looking down into the huge sea of it. Then, just as carefully, inner-Haruki put a foot in and started to go into the magic.

Sinking into your magic was an experience unlike any other. He'd read some people describe it as exciting or soothing or terrifying. Haruki's magic was a light, icy blue – it had always been so, even when part of it had been blocked. However, while one would think that the feeling of it on his skin would be as cold as the color, instead the magic felt warm and smooth, almost as if Haruki was dipping into a Caribbean sea instead of his magic.

He bathed in the magic, feeling it rise and lower with him as he moved. However he soon remembered why he'd come – to take off the self-erected barriers on half of his magic.

Haruki had always had a short temper – even with years in this world, that hadn't changed. His magic tended to explode with his temper, and since he hadn't wanted anyone to know of it, he'd put barriers up on parts of it. That kept his magic small enough to be manageable so he wouldn't go blasting it all over the place when he got angry. However, he'd made them easily destructible so if he was in danger he could break them down fast and have his magic to aid him. With the upcoming war, Haruki knew that he'd have to use his magic – it was too useful to be locked away.

Carefully, Haruki destroyed the barriers – he didn't want to his magic to overflow too fast so he had to do it one by one instead of destroying them all together. However they were easily put down – they were flimsy barriers and since he had erected them, they were easier to take down for him than they would have been for any other magical being.

When he felt that all the barriers had been destroyed, Haruki withdrew from his magic and mind to find that he was lying on his back and that hours had passed. The sun had sunk below the trees, casting shadows across Haruki's face as he sat up and wearily rubbed his face. Feeling aches in his back Haruki gripped his sword and rose to his feet. Looking up at the sky he winced when he saw how much the sun's position had changed. Kamin would be angry at him for being gone all day without telling him where. Haruki paused and tilted his head to the side, looking decidedly cat-like. Perhaps now would be the perfect time to tell Kamin about his skills in magic. They were at a stand-still with their enemy, and it would be better to tell him sooner rather than later. Haruki nodded to himself, decided. He would tell Kamin today. He ignored the slight fear in the back of his mind that his friend and boss wouldn't accept this new part of him.

* * *

"Where the hell were you?!" Kamin roared as soon as Haruki stepped foot in the meeting hall. "I thought that you were just going to check on the trainees, and then I hear that you've disappeared and you don't show up till sun-down!" Kamin was seething. Haruki watched with interest – he'd rarely seen the lord this angry before.

"Oh, give him a break, darling," Miaka purred from her seat. "He probably wanted some _alone_ time." She winked at Haruki. "Or maybe the kitten wasn't so alone?"

Haruki made a face. "I don't have a lover, Miaka-san," he said bluntly. "I'm still a virgin."

Shocked silence met this statement until Yuuta stepped forward, his green eyes wide with surprise. "Really, Haruki-kun? I would have thought you would have found someone by now! You aren't a kitling; surely someone has expressed interest in you . . . .?"

Haruki smiled slightly. "There has been interest, Yuuta-san, but none that I've reciprocated."

Keiji leaned forward interestedly. "Oho? Kitten's got some taste then, ne? Maybe I should be the one to _teach_ you then . . . ." He leered mockingly at Haruki.

The kurohyou raised an eyebrow. "I wouldn't want to get fleas, _Keiji-san_," he said frigidly, "so I doubt that I'd want to sleep with a perverted mutt like you."

Miaka laughed. "My, he did tell you off, Keiji. But you've always liked a challenge, haven't you, darling? You should stop being so feisty, Haruki-kun, then he'll stop chasing you!" She smiled teasingly.

"As _interesting_ as this conversation is, I would still like to know where you were for the past six hours, Haruki," Kamin said, a little uncomfortable with his friend's sex life being discussed in front of him. Haruki, damn him, just sent him a smirk, well aware of the reason for Kamin's stiffness.

"Yes, if you don't have a paramour, where were you, darling?" Miaka asked curiously, always the nosy one.

Haruki's face turned serious and the mood of the meeting hall changed from playful to intense. "I have some information to share with you, Kamin," he said quietly.

Yuuta raised an eyebrow. "Should we be here for this, or do you want us to leave?"

Miaka scowled at him. "Don't ask him that, darling! I want to hear what he has to say!" Yuuta gave her an amused look, but didn't answer. Haruki spared Miaka a smile.

"You can stay. It's better that you all know as well." Keiji leaned forward in his seat, his perverted side quite gone in the face of Haruki's seriousness.

Haruki took a deep breath. "Kamin, you know that I am a hanyou and that I am a kurohyou hanyou on top of that. However, you are unaware of other skills that I possess." Haruki frowned inwardly – he sounded so formal, but he didn't know how else to word what he wanted to say. "I suppose this skill is somewhat like youki, only much more practical and far-reaching. You see, I . . . can do magic."

Silence reined the hall until Kamin snorted. "Magic? You mean the hocus-pocus I have the nomads do for the pups during our Summer Festival? That's nothing special, Haruki, nor particularly useful."

Haruki's eyes narrowed. "No, that's not what I'm talking about at all. My magic is hereditary, and it is far more useful than the mockery the nomads make of it for the cubs." Haruki suddenly spun on his heel and waved a hand at the huge dining table behind him – it was made out of oak and took four strong youkai to move it. **"Wingardium Leviosa,"** he murmured, waving his hand casually. The table trembled for a moment before rising in the air, hovering a good foot over Haruki's head.

Haruki left it there for several moments to make a point and then gently let it touch the ground once more. When he turned, he saw several astounded faces staring at him.

"Do I need to demonstrate again, or does that prove my magic's usefulness?" Haruki asked dryly, snapping them out of their shock. Miaka looked enchanted, Yuuta intrigued, and Keiji, for some reason, looked like he was salivating. Haruki sent a frown the wolf's way only to get a wink in return. Huffing, he turned to see Kamin's reaction and was relieved to see that his friend looked thoughtful instead of fearful.

"What else can you do?" Kamin asked.

Haruki shrugged. "I'm most proficient in Defense, but I can heal, transfigure, and make potions – if I can find the right ingredients here – and a great many things."

"Transfigure?" Yuuta asked interestedly. "What is that?" Haruki smiled to himself – he'd met a few kitsune youkai and they always seemed curious to him. Curious about knowledge, about the world, about people – about everything.

"I'll show you," Haruki said, and he took out his wand. He could do many things wandlessly, but transfiguring was not one of them. Transfiguration was difficult and required quite a bit of concentration to get it right – Haruki didn't have the skills to do it without the focusing tool of the wand, like many other wizards. In fact, Hermione and McGonagall were the only people he knew that could do it without a wand. Haruki felt a pang of homesickness but shrugged it off and turned his wand on a nearby chair that belonged to the table he'd just levitated.

**"Abeo unto cattus!"** **(1)** he barked out and the chair morphed slowly into a brown, stocky feline. He heard Miaka laugh, twin yelps from Keiji and Kamin, and a thoughtful hm from Yuuta.

**"Finite Incantatem,"** Haruki murmured after petting the cat once or twice, and a chair replaced the purring feline.

"To transfigure is to change one thing into another," Haruki said, copying the words McGonagall had told him long ago. "It can be animals or objects. However, when you can, you must always undo what you've transfigured. To keep a living or nonliving thing as something it isn't supposed to be goes against the rules of nature, and is wrong."

Yuuta nodded. "I understand, Haruki-kun." His eyes were glowing and Haruki could tell that his mind was working swiftly.

"Should I give any more demonstrations?" Haruki asked, turning to the other Lords (and Lady).

"Can you copy weapons?" Kamin asked. "Like making dozens of arrows out of one, or something like that?"

Haruki nodded.

"Then why didn't you do that with the swords?!" Kamin asked, exasperated. He'd seen how hard Haruki had worked himself to get those swords finished in time – he ate even less than he had before, and Kamin had woken more than once to the sound of Haruki working until the early hours of dawn.

Haruki raised an eyebrow. "Arrows are easy for me to copy because their structure is simple. Metal is a difficult thing to copy because of all the elements making it up – arrows only have very little metal on their tips, so that's easy enough, but swords are made completely from metal. It would be difficult to do and tax me more than making the sword with my own hands would." Then Haruki frowned. "Besides, it's more pleasing to me to do it with my own hands. Just because I have magic doesn't mean I'm not an ordinary blacksmith, Kamin."

Kamin shook his head. "Trust me, you are anything but ordinary, Haruki," he said with a wry smile. "But I'll let you keep your illusions for now. Now – how do you wish to help with your magic? I assume that's why you decided to reveal it to us – so you could put it to use in the battlefield, correct?"

"Yes," Haruki said. "I believe I can track down one of the bases of our enemies." Keiji shot up to his feet.

"Why didn't you tell us before? That would have saved a lot of time!"

"I have been very busy, Keiji-san, and I only had time to lift the barriers on my magic today." At Yuuta's questionable look he added, "My magic tends to explode with my emotions. I didn't wish for people to ask questions, so I blocked some of it so it would be more manageable."

"How do you plan to find the base?" Yuuta asked, ever the reasonable one.

"There are Ryuu scales some of the warriors are using as trophies from battle, correct?" Haruki asked. "If I can use one of those, I can trace it to the dragon the scales came from."

"But most of them come from the scales of defeated Ryuu warriors – already dead and buried," Kamin said. "How can that help us?"

"Not all of them are that way," Haruki said. "I heard one of the warriors – Masaka, I believe his name is – saying he managed to get scales from a Ryuu warrior, even if the youkai did end up alive after their battle." Haruki smiled. "Warriors and their boasting."

Kamin sighed. "Let's go and ask him about it then. If it's true that the warrior got away, we will use those scales and you can do with them as you wish."

Haruki nodded, satisfied. "Alright. Let's go ask him now, then, so we can get this over with as soon as possible."

* * *

It turned out that Masaka's boasting was true – the Ryuu warrior he'd gotten scales off of had managed to get away alive during their fight. He willing gave the scales up to his lord, even if he was confused about what Kamin would want to use them for. However he didn't ask – he knew better than to ask things of Inu-no-taicho when the lord didn't willingly give out the information.

Kamin gave the scales to Haruki as soon as they left Masaka's little hut. "Are you going to find the base tonight?" he asked.

Haruki shrugged and tucked the scale against his body. It was strangely smooth, and warm. "It should be done as soon as possible, so I believe tonight would be best. I will need a mirror or a bowl of water," he added. Kamin raised an eyebrow so Haruki explained, "To show you the place the Ryuu is in."

Kamin was surprised. "I'm going to be doing this with you?" Haruki shrugged.

"You know the land better than me. It is likely you will recognize the place where I might not, and having it only in my head will be of no use to us."

Kamin considered this and nodded. "You're probably right, as usual," he said with a wry smile. Then he added, after a moment's hesitation, "Do you want Sesshoumaru to know of your magic?"

Haruki paused mid-step and then stopped, turning to look at Kamin. "Do you think he'll take it well?" he asked quietly. "My magic?"

Kamin smiled slightly. "Sesshoumaru is an extraordinary pup. I have no doubt that he will not mind you having magic, Haruki."

Haruki nodded thoughtfully. "Then I believe I will tell him. He has a right to know as much as you do, Kamin."

Kamin hid a smile. Haruki probably had no idea how much Sesshoumaru looked up to him – almost as much as he looked up to Kamin himself. Haruki had always been oblivious to that kind of attention – the trainees worshipped him, the warriors respected him (and were very wary of his temper), and he had the ears of the Lords of the Lands. Plus, Kamin wasn't as blind to Keiji's wandering eye as his blacksmith was. And yet, Haruki never noticed any of this. Kamin had always wondered why the hanyou never saw the affection everyone expended towards him.

"Should I get Sesshoumaru so he can see where the warriors are at as well?" Kamin asked mildly.

Haruki shrugged. "If you want him to see it, I can't stop you. I'll explain about my magic beforehand, of course."

Kamin nodded. "Where would you like to do it?" he asked. Haruki's head tilted.

"Outside would be best," he said finally. "Meet me by the forge and we'll proceed from there. And try to find a mirror or water, or _something_!" he added as Kamin began to walk away. Kamin saluted him and hurried to the castle.

The only place Kamin could remember a mirror being in was in his room – with all of his dead wife's belongings. Kamin felt a pang go through him at the thought – despite the fact that their marriage had been arranged, he had loved his wife. She had been kind and sweet and gentle, and he would never have wished the kind of death she had on her even if she had not had such a disposition. Even after three years, he still missed her terribly – and he could tell that Sesshoumaru missed her just as much, if not more. The boy had loved his mother deeply, and had been devastated when she'd died. Kamin had been horrified to hear that Sesshoumaru had been present when his mother had taken her last breath – Kamin had been absent, getting some much needed rest after spending night after night with his wife. It had changed Sesshoumaru – and not for the better. He was colder now, and stiffer. When he was a child he'd been serious, but he'd been able to relax and play as well. Now, Kamin rarely saw him do anything other than train.

Kamin sighed as he searched through his dead wife's things. He was hoping Haruki could get Sesshoumaru to be happier – he knew that he couldn't, for all that he'd tried to.

He found an onyx mirror at the bottom of his wife's chest of clothes – she had always loved onyx. Her ladies had found it strange that she had asked for that instead of silver, but Kamin had found it unique. He shook the memory away and hurried out of his rooms to find Sesshoumaru.

The boy was sitting in his bed, reading through a scroll. He looked up when Kamin barged into his room and blinked. "Chichiue," he said gravely.

"Come with me, Sesshoumaru," Kamin said. "Haruki has a job to do, and I want you to see it." Versed as he was with Sesshoumaru's expressions, Kamin saw the fleeting look of worry cross over his son's face and hid a smile.

Sesshoumaru hurried after his father as they made their way down to the forge. Haruki was waiting for them there, his eyes closed as he leaned on the outside of the little hut. When he heard them approach, he opened his eyes and Kamin marveled at how they glowed in the darkness. Haruki truly was a kurohyou.

"Let's get this over with," Haruki muttered. He looked down at Sesshoumaru. "Cub, I've got something I need to tell you." Sesshoumaru raised an eyebrow. "I can do magic," Haruki said bluntly. "And not the type of the nomads – but a much more useful kind." Haruki turned to Kamin and the Inu lord was alarmed to see the mischievous look in his eyes before Haruki waved his hand and said the same strange words he had before and Kamin suddenly found himself floating feet above the ground. He gestured wildly, shouting expletives until he was finally lowered back to the ground.

"That was unnecessary, Haruki!" he said indignantly.

Haruki shrugged. "It got my point across," he pointed at Sesshoumaru, who was staring at Haruki with wide eyes. "I'm going to use my magic to find the Ryuu warriors, Sesshoumaru – you've heard of them, correct?" Sesshoumaru, still getting over his shock, nodded slowly. Kamin had taken him aside one day to tell him about the upcoming war and his expected part in it. "Kamin, do you have the mirror?" Kamin handed him the onyx mirror, and he saw Sesshoumaru's look of recognition. He gave Sesshoumaru a look and the pup nodded, understanding that he was to stay silent on where Kamin got the mirror. Haruki, ignoring them both, moved away from his forge until he was standing under open sky.

Carefully he knelt and laid the mirror and the scale before him. He also took off his shirt, folding it neatly and laying it beside him. "You both stay behind me," Haruki said and then he closed his eyes. He bowed before the mirror, his head nearly touching the ground. "I give thanks to the dead woman to whom this mirror belonged to for allowing me to use it in my time of need," he said solemnly, and Kamin and Sesshoumaru exchanged startled looks. "I also give my thanks to the one who this scale belongs to, for giving me this guide in my time of need."

Haruki straightened and then held his hands out straight in front of him, hovering over the shining surface of the mirror and the dull plane of the scale. **"Reperio erus illae lanx ; ostendo mihi qua sit!"**

The scale glowed as soon the last word was said, burning brightly in the grass in front of Haruki. The mirror also burned, the polished glass on the front shining so brightly Kamin and Sesshoumaru had to turn their eyes away from it. Haruki, however, continued to stare into this distance, ignoring the bright items sitting in front of him. Slowly, the mirror and scale started to dim and then turned back to their regular shades altogether. Kamin crept closer and was startled when Haruki turned sharply towards him. "Look into the mirror, Kamin! I do not know how much longer I can hold the image!"

Kamin hurried forward and was shocked to see a large village sitting in the mirror, surrounded by thick forest. His brow wrinkled as he contemplated the place – and then his eyes lit up as he realized exactly what he was looking at.

"I know that place!" he said. "That's a village in the West!" He glared slightly at the mirror. "They must have taken it over!"

Haruki shuddered slightly and then the image slowly faded from the mirror. "You'll be able to find the place then?" the kurohyou murmured tiredly.

Kamin nodded, anything but sleepy. "Yes! I'll have to tell the warriors to be on the move tomorrow, and maybe we can block them in before they notice us. Ryuu youkai have always relied most on their sense of sight, so maybe if we stay quiet and far away—" He looked down to see that Haruki had slumped near his feet, dead asleep. Smiling slightly, he turned to Sesshoumaru, who had watched the entire exchange quietly. "We'd better put him to bed," he told his son and then carefully picked Haruki up and placed him in his arms bridal style. "Carry the mirror, scale, and his shirt, Sesshoumaru," he ordered and then started to walk away. Sesshoumaru grabbed the said items and then turned to follow his father, never looking back at the now empty patch of clearing behind him.

* * *

**Author's Note:** I'm so sorry it took so long! (And that's it so short –sweatdrop-) I got really bad writer's block for this story, and then I had school and no time, and then I had family matters to deal with . . . . But that's no excuse! I'm so, so _sorry_ about leaving this story un-updated for so long! I promise I'll try to make sure it never happens again . . . . But knowing me, it probably will sometime. But my writer's block is over with, so hopefully the new chapter will be up sooner. Please leave a review . . . . Even though I don't deserve any. T.T Also – I may have accidentally said Harry once or twice instead of Haruki in this chapter. –winces- I'm leaving soon, so I don't have time to look it over, so please excuse the mistake! My stupid subconscious made me do it! XD

**(1)** Rough translation: change into cat. I'm not an expert at Latin – I got this from an online translator –sweatdrop-. If I'm wrong, please tell me.


	9. Chapter Four: The Confrontation

**Author's Note:** Sorry, sorry, SORRY for being so late with this. I have to be the worst updater in the history of writing.

* * *

**More Than Useless  
****Chapter Four: The Confrontation**

He was smiling. Most people do that quite naturally. On Devore's face it looked like a learned skill. (Bag of Bones by Stephen King)

The key to successful leadership is influence, not authority. (Ken Blanchard)

An enemy generally says and believes what he wishes. (Thomas Jefferson)

Observe your enemies, for they first find out your faults. (Antisthenes)

The meeting of two personalities is like the contact of two chemical substances: if there is any reaction, both are transformed. (Carl Jung)

* * *

**The Western Land**

Haruki was starting to get impatient. Inuyasha wasn't sure how he could tell, but he knew that his newfound mentor was anything but patient. Perhaps it was something in his presence, or the way that he was playing with the end of his hair absently as he stared out into the forest that surrounded the small camp they'd made. Whatever it was, Inuyasha knew that he wouldn't disturb Haruki; his mentor wasn't the most patient of people, especially when he was cranky or distressed.

Haruki, on the other hand, had noticed Inuyasha's staring and tried not to be amused by it. He could tell that his student was obviously wary of coming over to speak with him. Inuyasha had gotten the hint that when Haruki was in a bad mood he was to be left alone when Haruki had stuck a knife near a very _valuable_ place the last time he'd tried such. The cub's face during that moment had been priceless. Haruki could almost forget his current frustration when he thought of it. However, even such amusing thoughts couldn't distract him, as he returned his current annoying problem.

Sesshoumaru was _late_.

As long as he'd known Sesshoumaru, the Inu-youkai had _never_ been late. Even as a cub, he'd been abnormally punctual, which had made Haruki wonder at the time if Sesshoumaru wasn't a little too mature for his age. _'Obviously that maturity decreased with age,'_ Haruki thought with a scowl.

Normally, Sesshoumaru's lateness wouldn't have bothered him as much. But Haruki had felt something dangerous teasing at his senses, making him alert and jumpy. He knew that there was something bad coming; he could smell it in the air. What it was, he had no idea, but he did know he'd rather have Sesshoumaru with him to face it then gone. Sesshoumaru was one of the best fighters in the Western Land – indeed, in any of the lands. Haruki felt more secure with someone like that at his back. Not that he didn't trust Inuyasha, but he'd known Sesshoumaru for years, had trained the cub himself, and Sesshoumaru was still one of his trusted friends. Even after not seeing each other for so long and Haruki's abrupt disappearance, he knew that he could trust his life in Sesshoumaru's hands.

Haruki sighed, leaning back into the tree trunk behind him. The sun was close to the horizon and still, no sign of Sesshoumaru. If he wasn't there by sundown, Haruki would go looking for him. He _had_ said he'd drag the youkai back if he didn't come back on his own. Haruki's lip quirked at the picture that made, distracting him enough that he didn't immediately notice the rustling trees and the sudden hush of the forest animals. However he snapped to attention when his nose caught the faintest scent of an unknown youkai heading swiftly to their camp. As soon as Haruki confirmed it wasn't Sesshoumaru he leapt down from his tree.

"Inuyasha!" he snapped out, drawing the hanyou's attention. Inuyasha sprang to his feet, sniffing the air for whatever had alarmed his new mentor. His eyes widened as he picked up the scent.

"Naraku!" he roared.

"Fuck!" Haruki spat out, his hand going down to his swords. "Why did he have to show up now of all times?!" Haruki growled before turning to give Inuyasha a pointed look. "Inuyasha, get ready for battle. Miroku!" The monk hurried forward, his eyes wide. "The girls are out finding supplies, go get them and get them as far away as you can." Miroku looked ready to protest but Haruki cut him off irritably. "Yes, yes, you're capable; you can fight, good for you. But right now you have the job of keeping them safe and away from this battle, understand? There will be other times when you can get your revenge, but for now it'd be best to stay away." When Miroku still looked uncompromising, Haruki gave him a shove and added, "Trust me, if we need your help, we'll call for it. Kouga," he turned to the ookami, "you go with him." Kouga shot a look at Inuyasha but nodded all the same.

Miroku finally left with a few backwards looks over his shoulder. Haruki turned to Inuyasha. "I'm sure this isn't the real Naraku," he murmured. "It's either a doll or one of his minions."

Inuyasha gave him a suspicious look. "How do you know about his dolls?" he asked. "And his followers?"

"I've been watching you, remember?" Haruki said irritably. "And, like I said, I know a few things about Naraku. Now, if it _is_ a doll or minion, we can probably get rid of it easily. The main thing I'm worried about is if it is the real Naraku, because if it is than he knows I'm with you and he won't be playing nice anymore."

"He's never 'played nice' with us!" Inuyasha snarled, but his hand went to his sword and drew it out protectively. Haruki snorted.

"He probably went as close to going full-out with you and Sesshoumaru as he's likely to against anyone," Haruki said. "He doesn't go full out against me either. Naraku's a cautious bastard; he doesn't use all of his power unless it's needed. It's a smart move, too."

"Cowardly too," Inuyasha said. Haruki laughed, despite the rising tension in the air.

"Yeah, that too," he agreed, thinking back to the time when he'd thought that everything that involved sneakiness was cowardly. After living through two wars and more than 500 years, he'd learned better though. "Doesn't make it any less smart."

Their conversation was cut off when Naraku's scent became overpowering on the wind. Haruki instantly closed his eyes. Inuyasha eyed him curiously.

"Is that the time to be doing this?" he asked out of the corner of his mouth, trying to sniff out which way Naraku would approach. Haruki let a smile touch his lips.

"Naraku likes to trick the senses," he murmured, his tail flickering slowly from side to side behind him and his sword held steadily in one hand. "But this is one sense he can't trick. He's tried, that bastard, but he never has and never will." Haruki tensed. "He's coming from the north," he said quietly. "He'll be here in a minute, minimum. Prepare yourself, Inuyasha."

Inuyasha tensed and stared into the trees with bright yellow eyes. He'd fought Naraku before, of course, but it had always been without warning. Sometimes waiting for the battle was worse than the battle itself. Haruki could understand that, but he was distracted by tracking Naraku's every move with his spiritual senses. He was gaining in speed; Haruki would've been impressed with his quickness had the hanyou not been his enemy.

Naraku's arrival was preceded by an anti-climatic rustle of the bushes before he was upon them. However, to Inuyasha's surprise, he was ignored almost entirely. The dark-haired hanyou, looking as deadly and deranged as he ever did, had his entire attention focused on Haruki. Inuyasha found it strange that Naraku didn't just start the battle right away, especially when Haruki's eyes were closed. Instead, the hanyou stopped a few feet away, red eyes staring at Haruki intently. Suddenly, Naraku smiled. Inuyasha suppressed a shudder. That was an expression that wasn't meant to sit on Naraku's face.

"Yami Haruki," he purred out. "How pleasant to see you again."

Haruki gave a short laugh that sounded as far from cheerful as anyone could get. "I was hoping never to set eyes on you again, Naraku," he said. "Even if I did know your human body before you became . . . ." Haruki's eyes opened slowly, angry and slightly sad, "this."

Naraku sneered. "That pathetic thing? He was barely even worthy enough to lick a ningen's boot." Inuyasha stuffed his protest down his throat, becoming strangely prudent. There was something about this confrontation that told him not to interfere. This wasn't his battle, he realized; it was Haruki's. Whatever this confrontation was, it was between Haruki and Naraku, and Inuyasha decided he wouldn't interfere until he was needed. Even if he hadn't been raised as a noble youkai, he understood the meaning of honor.

Haruki snorted. "And you're not even worth that." Inuyasha suppressed a grin while Naraku's eyes narrowed angrily. "But now that we've exchanged the dutiful banter, can we start with the actual fighting? I find that I get tired of all this talking all too easily."

"So impatient to get beaten by me once more?" Naraku murmured silkily. Haruki narrowed his eyes at him.

"This time it won't be me whimpering in the dirt," he murmured and, with a swing of his sword, made the first strike.

Naraku dodged it, face going deadly calm. Haruki kept coming at him, sword swinging in a deadly pattern, but Inuyasha noticed that they weren't at his usual speed or strength. They seemed almost half-hearted. The inu-hanyou wondered why his friend wasn't going at full strength; it couldn't be that he was afraid of his enemy could it? Inuyasha didn't think Haruki has afraid of much, so it couldn't be that. He frowned, watching the battle closely.

"If you're going to fight me, at least put more effort into it," he said with a sneer. It seemed that Naraku had noticed Haruki's half-hearted attempts as well. Haruki grinned.

"I was just waiting for the right moment," he said, and the sun dipped below the hills, ending the day fully. Suddenly, Haruki made another swing with his sword – but he completely missed Naraku's body. However, a long thin slice of _something_ came out of the end of the sword, moving towards Naraku so fast that he only barely managed to dodge away. Inuyasha blinked, completely surprised. Why hadn't Haruki told him his sword had magical powers?

"Kokushibyou," Naraku murmured. "I remember that sword. Its magical powers only work at night, don't they?"

Inuyasha frowned; why was it that their worst enemy knew more about Haruki than he did? He'd have to rectify that when this was over. If Haruki survived. Inuyasha's mouth tightened. He'd make sure that the other hanyou did, if only to get answers to his questions. Inuyasha pointedly ignored the voice that told him that he'd gotten attached to the annoying cat.

Haruki grinned. "He lives only when the sun goes down. I'm surprised you remember Naraku. But now . . . ." Haruki dropped into an unfamiliar stance. "I think it's time we started this battle for real, don't you?"

Naraku smirked, and his body stretched slightly. His eyes flashed bright crimson. "Yes, I think it is time," he said. Inuyasha growled when he saw the tips of Naraku's claws glow a bright, poisonous red. **(1)** However his attention was drawn when he felt a throb of power coming from Haruki. Or rather, Haruki's sword.

The black weapon was practically thrumming with power. The edges had turned silver, and looked painfully sharp. Strange characters carved into the sword were outlined in silver-gray, making them stand out on the black background. Inuyasha's eyes widened as he realized the sword had also gotten wider and longer.

Haruki eased the sword into his right hand, holding it in a way that made Inuyasha think he was about to go into a spin attack. Haruki then casually flipped the sword so that its curve was facing the opposite way of its opponent. Inuyasha frowned, wondering what the hell Haruki was playing at. Naraku, on the other hand, seemed to have a hint of an idea, for his crimson eyes narrowed and he started to move forward, his teeth bared.

It was only because Inuyasha was watching Haruki closely that he saw the next move. Haruki did move into a spin attack, but he didn't try to slice his opponent; instead he whipped his sword out swiftly, and it released the same strange energy as it had before. Inuyasha gaped at the black power that ripped out of the sword, flinging its way to Naraku at an uncanny speed. The hanyou only barely managed to dodge, still managing to get a gash on his side. Naraku growled when he realized he had an injury, but Haruki didn't show any sign of victory on his face. **(2)**

"I've made improvements since the last time we met, Naraku," Haruki said simply, sword still outstretched.

Naraku glared at Haruki, but Inuyasha noticed he moved more cautiously now. Whether it was because of the cut to his side or the new power his friend had showed, he didn't know. But then, Naraku smiled, and it was a terrible sight to behold.

"Dear Haruki," he said, nearly purring out the words. Inuyasha shuddered. "Clever, powerful Haruki. You always were my equal."

Haruki's lips curled into a vicious frown. "Yeah, well, that seems to be my job description: the equal to every fucking dark lord out there." He sounded disgusted.

Naraku smirked. "Oh don't worry. I don't intend for you to remain my equal for very long. After all, I do plan to crush you." Haruki's green eyes darkened.

Suddenly he moved forward, almost too fast for Inuyasha to see, coming at Haruki with brightly glowing claws. Haruki cursed and dodged backwards, still getting a swipe at his chest. His clothes hung ragged over his frame.

"Damnit," the hanyou muttered, ears twisted backwards on his head. "Why am I always wearing my favorite clothes when I get in a battle?!"

"If your clothes are what you're worrying about, then I'm not doing my job right," Naraku hissed out, leaping at Haruki once more.

Inuyasha's fingers tightened around his sword as he watched them battle progress. Every time Naraku came close to Haruki's throat or face with those poisonous claws, he debated jumping in. But still, there was that strange feeling that this was Haruki's battle, not his own. Until the other hanyou called him in for help, or was obviously in need of it, Inuyasha wouldn't interfere, no matter how much his conscious was screaming at him to. It was a matter of honor, and Inuyasha wasn't brash or stupid enough to interfere with that.

Still, he let out a sigh of relief when Haruki managed to dodge every attempt that those claws made to get him, and even managed to push Naraku away from him. His sword was still glowing with energy, and every chance he got, he pushed the dark power out of it, managing to hurt Naraku just as many times as Naraku hurt him.

It was when Haruki was almost stabbed in the abdomen that Inuyasha first felt his brother's youkai. His body instantly tensed, used to defensiveness whenever that distinctive presence came into the air, but Inuyasha forced it to relax. He had to keep reminding himself that his brother wasn't the enemy, not anymore. It was a weird thought; he'd existed in a state of perpetual battle with Sesshoumaru for so long it was hard to imagine working _with_ him now. He supposed he had Haruki to thank for the chance to get to know the brother that he'd never had.

Sesshoumaru appeared moments later, as elegant as ever. Inuyasha wondered where the girl and the demon he'd gone to fetch were, but managed to find them a few moments later with a small stretch of his senses. Sesshoumaru must have ditched them as soon as he felt Naraku, Inuyasha thought. It was a good plan; that little girl Sesshoumaru carried around would be a burden in battle.

"How long have they been fighting," Sesshoumaru instantly asked Inuyasha, eyes hooded and fixed on the battling couple. Haruki was bleeding now, but so was Naraku, so Inuyasha counted that as a good sign.

"At least fifteen minutes," Inuyasha muttered back quietly. "He arrived not long before sunset." Sesshoumaru's mouth twisted into a half-smirk.

"He should have come in the middle of the day," he murmured.

"Yeah, Haruki's sword is pretty kick-ass," Inuyasha said, gathering his brother's meaning. He winced when he saw Naraku land another blow. "We can't help him," Inuyasha muttered. Sesshoumaru gave him a sharp look. "It's his fight," the hanyou explained. "He wouldn't want anyone to interfere."

"If I deem it necessary, _I will_," Sesshoumaru said sharply. Inuyasha winced and his hand went to his sword, too trained to react to that tone violently to do anything else. Sesshoumaru noticed the action and his posture softened somewhat. "Haruki is many things and among them, reckless fool is at the top. He will need my assistance and I will provide it when the time is right. _You_, however," he added with a long stare at Inuyasha, "will stay out of this."

"If you help Haruki, I'm doing it too!" Inuyasha said hotly. "And it's not like you can waste the time stopping me!"

Sesshoumaru scrutinized him. "True," he conceded. "But you should not join us. It will be troublesome enough with the two of us."

"More is better when it comes to Naraku," Inuyasha said stubbornly. His head turned when he heard a yelp of pain and sighed in relief when he realized it was Naraku. "So now we just wait?" he asked tensely.

Sesshoumaru raised an eyebrow. "Is that not what you have been doing for the past minutes?" he asked. Inuyasha might have almost called him serene if it wasn't for the sharp movement of his eyes as he followed the battle that was coming closer to them. Haruki and Naraku had moved across the plain while the two brothers had talked but since then, they had moved closer and closer until Inuyasha could make out details again. The hanyou was alarmed to see how much his teacher was bleeding.

"You really think you can defeat me, Haruki?!" Naraku said his voice high and clear with a type of murderous exhilaration.

Haruki scowled and it was such a familiar expression that Inuyasha relaxed. "Trust me, _Onigumo_; I'll get you in the end."

_"NO!"_ Naraku shouted, eyes going wild and feral. "You won't _ever call me by that name again_!"

"Why not, _Onigumo_?" Haruki taunted, darting out of reach from Naraku's fierce swings. "You don't miss me? I feel betrayed. After all, we were so _close_ . . . ."

"Shut up!" Naraku shouted. "I'm not your precious _Onigumo_! He's _dead_! _I AM NARAKU_."

"Whatever mask you wear, however many demons you absorb, at the heart you'll _always_ be Onigumo," Haruki snarled at him. "You may pretend to be a youkai, but you're really just a _hanyou_ _like me_!"

_"SHUT UP!"_ Naraku was fairly glowing with power now, red surrounding his body like a cocoon. Inuyasha was horrified.

"What is he _doing_?!" he asked Sesshoumaru. "Making Naraku mad won't help him win!"

"I think it will," Sesshoumaru murmured, eyes fixed on Haruki. "He knows what he is doing."

Inuyasha looked up at his brother in surprise. He'd never heard such . . . affection in Sesshoumaru's voice before, not even when he'd been talking to Rin. He sounded like he had complete faith in Haruki's abilities, as if the hanyou would do his best and everything would turn out right in the end. Inuyasha wished he could have the same faith, but he didn't have the benefit of seeing Haruki fight before in a war. A few training lessons would never be enough to convince Inuyasha that a person could be trusted in battle.

"C'mon, _Onigumo_, show me what you're made of!" Haruki taunted. "After all, you weren't much of a warrior back when you were _human_!"

_"I was never human_," Naraku snarled.

"You can tell yourself whatever you want, but the fact of the matter is that once upon a time you were _human_. You breathed and wept and _felt_ like a human, _Onigumo_. And no matter how much _youkai_ you shove into your body, that's what you'll _always be_!"

_"NO!"_ Naraku howled and then the plain fairly exploded with power.

Inuyasha felt the explosion and instantly his arms went up to protect his body. Sesshoumaru shoved him behind him, acting like a shield as much as he could. However, it wasn't needed; the red power had spread across the field but it hadn't touched him or Sesshoumaru. There was a clear bubble wrapped around their bodies, protecting them from the outburst of youkai. Haruki, Inuyasha could see when he peeked around Sesshoumaru, was covered in a similar power. Inuyasha wondered what it was.

Eventually, the red power dispersed and disappeared. By the time it did, Naraku was gone. Haruki was eyeing the spot that he'd stood wearily. Sesshoumaru and Inuyasha walked to his side.

"He will be back," Sesshoumaru said quietly. Haruki nodded, looking exhausted.

"I know," he admitted. "And next time I won't be able to make him angry to get him to go away. The only reason it worked this time was because he hasn't fought me in a long time." He swayed on his feet, obviously feeling his injuries now that the adrenaline was gone. Sesshoumaru caught him around the waist while Inuyasha examined him for injuries, wincing when he noticed the protruding bones, multiple slashes and a large hole on the left side of his abdomen. Naraku had managed to do a lot of damage.

"He won't be going anywhere for a few days," Inuyasha told his brother. Haruki snorted.

"We'll leave tomorrow," he said, his voice slurring. "I jus' nee' . . . slee' . . . ." His head lolled back like a doll's and his body went limp. Sesshoumaru scooped him up into his arms, bridal style. Inuyasha sniggered at the image and wondered what his teacher's reaction would've been if he'd been conscious. Sesshoumaru sent him a glare that told him he knew exactly what Inuyasha had been thinking.

"We will stay here for the night and then leave in the morning," his older brother said, moving back to the camp. "Inuyasha if you would please fetch Rin and the others? I am sure they would like to return to camp."

Inuyasha watched his brother fade into the trees and sighed, moving to go to where he could smell the rest of his pack and Sesshoumaru's little girl.

* * *

"Naraku will be targeting me now that he knows I'm back in the game," Haruki told them all grimly.

They were gathered around the campfire; Sesshoumaru, seated between Rin and Inuyasha, seemed calm, while the rest of the group ranged from curious (Kouga) to frightened (Kagome).

"Why does he want you?" Miroku asked, fingering the beads on his hand. Haruki sighed.

"I don't know how much to tell you," he said sadly. "There are some parts of my life that I don't want to tell anyone Miroku. But I will tell you that . . . Naraku and I have a history. He knows my powers and he knows that I'm equal to him. Let me tell you one thing . . . Dark Lords, sure, they like all the power and the taking over the world thing. But the thing that really gives them a heady rush is having a rival; someone who they can trade blows and words with on an equal footing."

"You're sure that you're on that equal footing with Naraku?" Kagome asked skeptically. Inuyasha snorted.

"He just held him off by himself," he told the girl. "I'd say if anyone can get equal to that bastard then Haruki is pretty damn close."

"Haruki exceeds that hanyou by far," Sesshoumaru broke in quietly. Haruki smiled at him.

"Hero-worshipping me again, _Sesshou-chan_?" he teased. The group looked at him in shock and then looked at Sesshoumaru, wondering how exactly he'd kill the hanyou for daring to talk to him like that and give him that nickname. However, Sesshoumaru surprised them all by snorting quietly.

"I am just stating simple fact," he said regally. There was a pause before he added, "Don't call me that."

Haruki laughed and then gasped, wrapping a hand around his abdomen, which had been bandaged by Sango as soon as they'd arrived back at camp. It hurt like a bitch which, of course, meant that it was healing cleanly and quickly, from Haruki's experience. He just hoped that the worst of it would be over by tomorrow morning or he'd slow them all down.

"Next time, we all fight," Miroku said sternly to Inuyasha. Haruki sighed.

"I know you want your revenge," he said to Miroku, Sango, and even little Shippou. "I won't stop you. But whatever happens, I want you to follow me and Inuyasha and Sesshoumaru. I know Naraku the best, so I'm the leader, understood? Inuyasha and Sesshoumaru are youkai, which makes them ten times stronger than you and always ten times less likely to die. I know that you're strong for humans, but the problem is that we're not fighting a human; we're fighting a hanyou, who is on a different level from pretty much every hanyou I've ever seen. So if we go into battle, you will _listen_ to me. Otherwise I'll tie you all to a tree and let you go after it's all over."

Miroku nodded silently, taking in the serious look in Haruki's eyes with a thoughtful expression. Sango almost protested, but then she looked at Haruki's face and she shut her mouth. Kagome, however, was staring at the ground and had no such qualms about voicing her opinion.

"We can help! You just joined us; you don't have any right to—"

"Look, Kagome," Haruki said, catching the girl's eyes with his own. "I think that in time, I could come to like you. But at this moment, all of your arguments are just a pain in my ass. I know it's not fair, but since I don't particularly care about _being_ fair, it doesn't really matter does it? I know what I'm doing, I'm more powerful and more skilled, which means I lead and you follow. In normal situations, Inuyasha is your leader but when it comes to battle with Naraku I'm the veteran and you are all not. Which means you will _listen to me_ or you may end up getting killed; it's a miracle you haven't _already_."

"I agree with Haruki," Inuyasha said, surprising everyone. He pouted when he noticed their incredulous looks. "What? I can be mature!" The group laughed and the tension eased. "Haruki's right though. I trust him and he knows what he's doing; maybe this time we'll actually defeat the bastard instead of just wounding him."

Kagome was still frowning. Kouga nudged her in the side. "They're both right," he said, but his eyes were focused on Inuyasha. Haruki, noticing this, grinned and nudged Sesshoumaru in the side. Sesshoumaru frowned, looking down at the hanyou, who pointed with his eyes at the staring ookami. Sesshoumaru's frown deepened as he looked between Kouga and Inuyasha before a slight widening of his eyes betrayed his comprehension. Haruki shook with silent laughter as he took in Sesshoumaru's look.

The entire exchange was missed by everyone else as they all quietly talked and decided that it would be prudent to follow Haruki's lead when it came to battles with Naraku. When they turned their attention back to the hanyou, he was sitting still and grinning easily while a blank-faced Sesshoumaru stared a hole into the ground.

"So, we all decided then?" he asked, almost too cheerfully for a person who'd been half-dead the day before. The group nodded. "Good then! Now, I suppose we might as well finish the shard hunt . . . ." Kagome made an annoyed noise, but Haruki ignored her. "I mean, right now we have no idea where Naraku is, right?"

"No," Miroku said sourly.

"Well in that case, hunting the shards will make us travel. We can hear information that way. If we don't then Naraku will attack us since he now knows I'm traveling with you, so in the end it's win-win. And as we go, I'll continue to . . . _prepare_ all of you." The group (excluding Kouga and Sesshoumaru) groaned in unison.

"Great," Miroku said, standing as he prepared to get some wood for the evening. "Just when I thought my hand wouldn't cramp from practicing sealing."

"It could be worse," Sango murmured as she stood, pulling Kagome up with her. "He could be actually fighting us himself."

"Like me," Inuyasha said with a grumble, settling back into his seat with what could almost be called a pout on his face.

"At least your eyesight won't give out because you have to focus on tiny objects for three hours straight!" Kagome said crossly as Sango dragged her in the direction of a hot spring.

Sesshoumaru's lip twitched. "You are such a hard taskmaster, Haruki," he murmured to the hanyou. Haruki laughed.

"Oh, these kids, they exaggerate," he said. Sesshoumaru hummed with amusement.

"Haruki-san?" Haruki looked down to see big brown eyes staring up at him. Sesshoumaru's little human – Rin, he thought her name was – was in front of him, looking adorably shy.

"Yes, Rin-chan?" he asked, hoping he'd gotten her name right.

"Can I pet your kitty?" she blushed, pointing at Asa, who had been sleeping peacefully at Haruki's side. Her eyes opened sleepily when she heard her name and Haruki grinned.

"Of course you can!" he said and Rin instantly was on her knees, her hands stroking Asa's fur, making the cat purr throatily. Haruki chuckled.

"She's a cute human," he muttered to Sesshoumaru, too low for ningen ears to hear. His grin widened when he caught the tiny shuffle Sesshoumaru made, the only sign of discomfort the youkai would allow.

"Aa," he said stoically. Haruki rolled his eyes.

"I thought you'd grown out of that," he said, pocking Sesshoumaru in the stomach – or, at least, what he could reach of it through the thin armor he wore. Sesshoumaru's stare was almost indignant, but Haruki didn't care.

_"Aa,"_ Sesshoumaru said again and Haruki knew that that one had been a tease.

"Now you're just mocking me," he grumbled. "What happened to the sweet Sesshou-chan that used to follow me around and hero-worship me? I remember that time with the bandages you know. I thought it was _so adorable_. And remember that time with the bees? And that one with the swans and ducks? Oh and that one with the floating tables! Those were _good_ times. Now I'm stuck with this grumpy Sesshoumaru who—hey! Why are you fingering your sword?! Don't you know that's it's not good to—hey, no threatening an injured person, you great big bully!"

* * *

**Author's Note:** Uhm . . . . –tentatively offers up great big I'M SORRY cookies- I'M REALLY REALLY SORRY GUYS. I had no idea that I would get such major writer's block for this story. Seriously, that fight scene with Naraku? Took me like four months to write. It was TERRIBLE. I suck at updating. _So much_. I'm really, really sorry about how long it took me to update and I promise to try and do better next chapter. I'm also sorry that this chapter was so short but I knew you guys were sick of waiting so I thought I'd end it here. Next chapter we'll be back in time again and we'll see what the products of the alliance and the search bring us! Please leave a review (even though I really don't deserve one after being such a horrible updater . . . .)

**(1)** Uhm, does Naraku have poison claws? If he didn't, he does now . . . . –is content to ignore canon-  
**(2)** The technique is partly stolen from Bleach, I must admit. Only because the move is so cool I couldn't help myself. (Those of you who've read Bleach will know who I stole it from. Those of you who haven't should read it; it's an awesome series).


	10. THIS IS IMPORTANT, PLEASE READ

**THIS IS IMPORTANT. IF YOU'RE INTERESTED IN THE FUTURE OF THIS STORY, PLEASE READ ALL OF IT.**

Dear Readers,

After much consideration, I've decided that More Than Useless desperately needs to be re-vamped. Therefore, sometime during the summer, I will be taking it down and re-posting it, probably under a new name. I know that there are some of you who love this story, but I've looked it over and the writing and plot just aren't at the standard I usually set for myself. I need to re-do it.

The new More Than Useless will probably be under a new name. Not only that, but I will probably be changing a majority of plot points as well, and a lot of character interaction as well. The pairings will remain the same. I know that some of you like this story, so I will be leaving the original chapters up on my yahoo group site, which is linked at the bottom of my profile. Also, if you want to make a copy of this story for yourself off of, you can, because this will probably stay up for another week or two.

Once again, I'm sorry to those of you who like the story. I don't like taking things down when people like the story, because I've had that happen to me too many times to count and I hate it. But, unfortunately, I believe it's the best thing to do.

Thanks again for your support of this story, and I hope that you will continue to support it when the new version comes out.

EDIT: Some people have been asking how they'll find the new version. I'll post another note on this story so that you'll know that the new version is up, don't worry. Also - THIS VERSION WILL REMAIN UP UNTIL THE FIRST CHAPTER OF THE NEW ONE IS POSTED. The date that I'm going to post the new one will be announced in my profile, underneath the summer update schedule.

Unwritten.25


	11. LAST IMPORTANT MESSAGE

PLEASE READ THIS IMPORTANT

Dear Readers,

The new version of More Than Useless has been posted underneath the title "Wasted". The link is below, just take out the spaces.

http: / www . fanfiction . net / s / 6185661 / 1 / Wasted


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